Program connects business, intelligence and security.
It is the only college of its type in the nation, said Chancellor Anette Karlsson. The unique college was announced formally during the annual Board of Visitors meeting Sept. 29 on the ERAU campus. During that afternoon meeting, Karlsson introduced Thomas Drape as the interim dean of CBSI.
“I have met with many industry partners over the past year,” said Karlsson. “They have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive of this new college. In fact, a senior executive at a large aerospace company told me, ‘This is exactly what we need in 2021.”’
She explained that through the merger of business with intelligence and security, the university could leverage multidisciplinary expertise and opportunities. For example, by linking cybersecurity in aviation business to fraud investigations in forensic accounting, global security in supply chain management and business analytics with machine learning, students can enter internships and job opportunities with extraordinary skill levels.
In comments to Quad Cities Business News, Drape, the interim dean said, “Security and business are inextricably linked. We are having dynamic conversations with faculty, industry [leaders] and students on the connections and how we strengthen our programs through the merger. For instance, one of those connections is fraud investigations and the combination of security investigations, forensic accounting and cybersecurity. Another link is centered on the role of physical and cybersecurity in global supply chains and the need for lessons on anti-counterfeiting, brand protection and digital forensics. Another conversation includes cybersecurity and airport management after the very successful aviation ISAC Collegiate ‘Capture the Flag’ competition about the protection of a tier 1 airport. It was developed and hosted by our cybersecurity faculty and students.”
A former executive with Cox Communications, Alan Saquella, said of the new college, “We need workers who understand the language of business. The College of Business, Security and Intelligence is taking the lead by providing its students with the education, training and certification to prepare them. This will have a direct and positive benefit by creating great career opportunities for ERAU graduates.” Saquella is director emeritus of Security and investigations with Cox Communications.
CBSI JOINS THREE OTHER ERAU COLLEGES
The new college will join the College of Aviation, the College of Engineering and the College of Arts and Sciences. Collectively, the four colleges will offer 25 undergraduate degrees and three graduate programs to the record enrollment of about 3,200 students on the Prescott campus.
Administrators, students, faculty and invited guests had a special event in October in the AC 1 Atrium to celebrate creation of the new college. Assistant professor Reg Parker said that the graduates from the new college will be able to add value to any organization that hires them because they will be able to integrate knowledge of organizational behavior of people and awareness of supply chain movement and operational process.
Drape told board members that integrating the various disciplines will provide students with skill sets and knowledge that have immediate practicality in the “real world.” He also noted that students will have unique consulting and internship opportunities with firms from the aviation and aerospace industry. Students in CBSI program can select from among four individual degree programs.
Drape, who will administer the college, has been at ERAU since 2015. Prior to that, he had a distinguished military and academic career. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1992, he served 20 years in the Air Force working with defense and civilian contractors in project management and procurement within the aerospace supply chain. He has a Level III Certification in Program Management in advanced spacecraft technology and rapid launch flight programs.
Beyond that, Drape has an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh Katz Graduate School of Business and a bilingual Ph.D. from the IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain. He also taught at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Germany.
Prior to coming to ERAU, Drape had been chair of graduate and MBA programs in the School of Business at Azusa Pacific University. While there, he was named 2015 Teacher of the Year. He has several professional and scholarly publications in major research journals. QCBN
By Ray Newton, QCBN
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