Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/42073
from the editors Refining the Business Curriculum I recently started subscribing to the electronic newsletter that covers micronews about my community, such as high school sports meets, store openings, and events at the local rec center. A spring edition described the first meeting of the school board, which, among other things, approved new classes for the middle school curriculum. The offerings include a finance class for seventh graders and a Global Connections elective that allows students to stay updated on world events. Finance and globalization! Sounds to me like seventh-graders are receiving an early grounding in business education. And it sounds like the middle school administrators are working hard to make sure their curriculum reflects the realities of the working world their students will enter one day. Administrators at the university level are making similar efforts, albeit on a grander scale. One of the most popular trends in business schools is implement- ing flexibility into their curriculum design to allow students to combine their core courses with other subjects they find intriguing. Soon schools will be grad- uating whole classes of students with deep knowledge in businesses as well as some artistic or scientific field. It's easy to believe they'll have the edge in founding successful ventures in almost any industry. Like my local middle school, business programs also are emphasizing globalization. In this issue, we look at schools whose revamped curricula include international compo- nents as well as flexible formats: Johns Hopkins University, the University of Illinois in Urbana- Champaign, the University of Southern California, Cornell University, and CEIBS. We also provide highlights from AACSB's recent symposium on Redesigning the MBA, in which schools ranging from Harvard to IESE to the University of Colorado at Boulder share best practices on their own curricular enhancements. Because the business world is always changing, business schools must constantly evolve to keep up. I certainly didn't study finance or globalization when I was in seventh grade, but I'm glad to know that the next generation of business leaders will be getting an early start on these essential lessons. Coming Next Month BizEd celebrates the ten-year anniversary of its launch with a special issue that looks back at all the changes that have shaped the management education field in the last decade— and looks forward at the innovations to come. We talk to longtime deans, compare data from 2001 and 2011, and compile a few prescient quotes from business gurus and corporate CEOs who graced our pages during our first year. We look forward to sharing all this and more with you in the November/December issue of BizEd. 6 September/October 2011 BizEd RAQUITA HENDERSON