Study Abroad: It's More Than Business as Usual in Yucatán

Latin American music thumps overhead as six Millsaps College students weave their way through sewing equipment, fabric and laborers in a 250 yard-long facility at Ganso Azul ("Blue Goose") in Merida, Mexico. The students are part of a Global Business course taught by Associate Professor of Business Law Harvey Fiser.

The January 2012 intercession in Mexico offered students the opportunity to see a maquilladora, one of numerous assembly-line factories functioning under the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Maquilladoras typically are owned by American, European or Asian investors. Ganso Azul produces 500 styles of law enforcement uniforms, including ones shipped to Mississippi and Texas.

The 15-day intercession has exceeded students' expectations. "It's the best study abroad experience I've ever had," said senior Drew Moroux of Lafayette, La. The students also participate in excursions to a gold factory and a cucumber farm, as well as to the Mayan ruins located at Kaxil Kiuic, Millsaps College's 4,500-acre biocultural reserve in Yucatán.

Millsaps College Ranked Among Best Schools in Nation

In The Princeton Review's The Best 376 Colleges, Millsaps was ranked among the best in the nation.

Based on student responses, Millsaps professors received the eighth highest ranking in the country as a college where students consider their instructors "good teachers," Professors Get High Marks (No. 8). Students also value relationships with the local Jackson community, Town-Gown Relations Are Great (No. 19).

The Princeton Review named the Else School of Management at Millsaps College one of the Best Business Schools in the Southeast in the 2011 edition of its book, The Best 300 Business Schools.

See more awards and accolades for Millsaps College ...

Else School of Management Recognized as a Rising Star

The Else School of Management's master's of business administration program has been recognized as a Top 10 Rising Star for 2011 by FindyourMBA.com.

The Else School of Management at Millsaps College was listed No. 9 out of 30 business schools. FindyourMBA.com critiques business schools from a student's perspective and considers factors such as improvements and developments which enhance the student experience.

"We are adding new programs, like our Executive MBA, to our already strong academic lineup, and it's wonderful to receive outside recognition that reaffirms the value of what we do here at the Else School," said Howard McMillan, dean of the Else School of Management.

FYMBA Rising Stars 2011
FYMBA Else School Profile
Millsaps MBA Program
Millsaps Executive MBA Program

Millsaps Mentor Programs Provide Invaluable Experience

When Casey Holloway, a senior religious studies/sociology major from Hammond, Louisiana, leaves her contemporary sociological theory class every Tuesday morning, she dons scrubs and heads to the operating room at Mississippi Baptist Medical Center, just a few blocks from campus. She is one of many pre-health students at Millsaps who participates in the College's unique medical mentoring program. The program pairs current undergraduates with medical professionals, many of whom are Millsaps alumni, for a semester-long experience.

Casey shadows Millsaps alum Dr. J. Russell Rooks ('82), a general surgeon, both in the operating room and clinic. She has previously shadowed physicians in the fields of family medicine and pediatrics, but she chose to work with a surgeon this semester to gain experience in the technical aspect of medicine.

"The inside of the human body is the most amazing, most incredible, most awe-inspiring thing I have ever seen," says Holloway. "The hours I spend observing in the operating room feel like minutes. As a result of this mentorship, I am seriously considering surgery as a career option."

A Tradition of Service and Engagement

Forty-six freshmen arrived on campus this fall eager to embrace John Wesley's thoughts, "Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can."

The freshmen participate in the Wellspring Program, where they live together in a residence hall and engage in a year-long service commitment, as well as large-group service projects and monthly community-building and civic reflection activities.

The program, part of the College's 1 Campus, 1 Community Center for Engaged Learning and Living, began in 2006 and helps first-year students connect with their new community in Jackson. During October, they helped build a home for Habitat for Humanity.

"Wellspring is an incredible opportunity and eye-opening experience," said Austin Deskewies, a Wellspring resident assistant. "I think it gives freshmen a perspective on the community that they have never experienced before."