MARY MEIXELL was recently named the new dean for the Johnson & Wales University College of Business. She brings to the university more than 20 years of higher education experience, including as a faculty member and administrative leader. She most recently served as a senior associate dean at Quinnipiac University’s School of Business. Meixell also plans to work with business and civic leaders in Rhode Island, and further solidify JWU’s standing with industry leaders in hospitality, food, health and other sectors.
What are your immediate plans for the college as dean? I plan to move our college forward to be a positive force in our community. Our faculty and students want to use their expertise to make the world a better place. We already have initiatives in place today in support of this – for example, our accounting students prepare tax returns for those in need through the volunteer income tax assistance program.
What aspects of your experience working for General Motors Co. are you bringing to academia at JWU? For many of us, our first job is one where we learn the most, which is certainly true for me. I was a new college graduate when I joined General Motors, where I developed my work ethic and sense of professionalism, something that I’ve carried with me throughout my career. My experience at General Motors also taught me about the value of collaboration. When I teach supply chain management, I talk about the process of “aligning the arrows.” It is an important lesson; enterprises big and small cannot succeed if parts of the organization are at cross-purposes. All need to be working to the same goal.
JWU is known for hospitality and food service programs. Which other sectors do you hope to connect with the College of Business? One of the best things about a business education at JWU is the faculty, and specifically their close ties to industry. They exercise those relationships to the advantage of our students every day. I hope to expand on these relationships by connecting with sectors that already have a great deal of student interest. For example, the fashion merchandising and retail area. We have almost 300 students in these programs. There is a great opportunity area for both students and employers. We also have programs and strong student interest in financial services and supply chain and logistics management – I hope to also connect with companies in both of these sectors.
Which sectors do you feel need the most help with increasing the workforce and how will JWU help with that? Three industries important to the Rhode Island and New England economies come to mind for workforce growth: health care, technology and construction. It can be challenging to develop a workforce for these sectors because much of the work is interdisciplinary in nature. At JWU, we have interdisciplinary programs with foundations of collaboration. Our students take coursework in our College of Engineering & Design and College of Health & Wellness in support of careers [in] these sectors – in this way, we tie our academic programs’ focus on the needs of industry.
