World Class

First, I hope your semester is off to a good start, and you are excited about 2023. I know I am. It’s going to be a good year.

Each day I learn something new about Our School of Business and the College. Sure, we have our challenges. But this is a special place filled with special people. It’s not just special, but in many ways, it’s world-class.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, world-class means:

“Someone or something world-class is one of the best that there are of that type in the world.” 

We have world-class teachers, researchers, students, BOG members, and industry partners. Our City, Charleston, is often referred to as a world-class city. World-class is all around us.

Even the marketing firm 160/90, in its branding strategy and creative presentation for our School, used the words “world-class.”

Now, I know that decades ago, other academics tried to define what it meant to be a world-class academic institution. Plenty of books and articles were written on the topic. The Venn diagram produced by Jamil Salmi (page 8) makes a lot of sense and straightforwardly presents this idea.

For a business school, I think things like advisory boards and industry engagement are essential for us to be world-class. The School of Business at the College of Charleston is in a class all by itself. And this model is designed for schools like Stanford and MIT. So, maybe we should use a synonym instead. Elite is a solid synonym.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, elite means:

“Those people or organizations that are considered the best or most powerful compared to others of a similar type.”

You are some of the best, and you certainly make a powerful impact. So, as we venture into the year ahead, I encourage each of us to strive to be elite.

YOU make a difference.

Remember: