BYU Awarded $1.14 Million International Business Grant

PROVO, Utah – Oct 31, 2018 – The US Department of Education has awarded BYU and the BYU Marriott School of Business a four-year, $1.14 million grant to be administered through the Whitmore Global Management Center (GMC). The prestigious grant will allow BYU to continue to function as one of only fifteen Centers for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), providing valuable resources for the university, local communities, the Mountain West region, and the nation as a whole.

“The mission of the CIBER grant is to increase US competitiveness on a global scale,” says Jonathon Wood, GMC managing director. “From sponsoring high school case competitions to cutting-edge faculty research, we’ve designed initiatives to do just that.”

The GMC team worked for months to put together a proposal in order to renew the CIBER grant, which BYU has received every four years since 1990. That proposal laid out seventy initiatives, including study abroad programs, national case competitions, and regional international business conferences. Each of these programs and events help further the CIBER grant mission to increase international business acumen in the United States.

The grant funds also support important research initiatives. Bruce Money, the GMC’s executive director, explains that the grant plays an essential part in helping BYU Marriott faculty publish internationally respected research.

“Our faculty have outstanding research capabilities and come from the best programs,” says Money.  “The CIBER grant allows them to conduct path-breaking research that gets published in the best journals.” He adds that the grant helps drive BYU’s reputation as an outstanding university in an increasingly competitive landscape.  

The list of CIBER universities included thirty-three schools just two years ago. Now, the Department of Education has trimmed that number to just fifteen. BYU’s CIBER renewal, despite increased competitiveness, is further evidence of the university’s unique international environment and its dedication to global business.

“It’s a privilege to be included among the fifteen CIBERs,” says Wood. “We love to be associated with that group of distinguished universities.”