CSUB students receive scholarships to study at Paris School of Business

Summer trip funded by $22,000 donation from Dennis and Anne Beaver Foundation

By California State University, Bakersfield

October 21^st, 2024

Four California State University, Bakersfield students had the opportunity over the summer to explore another country and learn more about business at the same time.

The Dennis and Anne Beaver Foundation donated $22,000 to CSUB to fund scholarships for the students to attend a two-week program at the Paris School of Business in Paris, France. Students were able to take a course in either luxury brand management or artificial intelligence.

“I felt this exposure to France and to meeting students from all over the world would be important for them in the future as they get into the business world. I wanted them to broaden their horizons,” said Dennis Beaver, who practices law in Bakersfield and writes a syndicated newspaper column called You and the Law that is carried by several California papers and Kiplinger.com.

College of Business and Public Administration Dean Deborah Cours said she is grateful to the foundation for providing this study abroad opportunity to students.

“I’m thrilled that four of our students experienced a transformative study abroad program. Many of our students lack the family resources to afford a program like this,” she said. “It’s our goal to provide every student the opportunities that students at any highly ranked university might enjoy.”

The program featured lectures and workshops as well as an action learning component that tasked students with putting their knowledge to work on a real-life project. The students also had the opportunity to visit several cultural sites in Paris, including the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum.

“Having the opportunity to study abroad with the help of CSUB was a great experience,” said Esteban Cox, a senior majoring in business administration with a concentration in finance. “I made a lot of great memories with amazing people and was able to discover a brand-new world I would have never thought was possible for me. I am grateful for the opportunity granted to me and the support throughout the entire process.”

Fellow senior Brytney Hobson, who is double-majoring in general business and kinesiology, took the Luxury Brand Management course. She hopes to one day open her own luxury business.

“It was insightful to learn how to make my brand luxurious and sell that to customers,” she said. “It’s not really just about buying a product — it’s about a lifestyle. It’s about creating those long-term relationships.”

Hobson said having the opportunity to learn about business from a school in another country was one she couldn’t pass up on.

“It felt really prestigious getting to go to a different country and be invited into their education system,” she said. “For them to allow me to be educated by their professors in their school was really a big honor. It was kind of surreal.”

Hobson said the experience has renewed her excitement and interest in starting her own business and made her look at business through a different lens.

“I feel that it gave me a different perspective. It broadened my horizons and scope,” she said. “It opened me up to not just thinking about business from an American perspective but also the perspectives of other countries, their ideas and traditions.”

Cours said that shift to a more global view of business is one of the most important elements of study abroad programs.

“Studying internationally builds competitive knowledge for a global business environment and enhances students’ confidence. They will be more attractive to employers and graduate schools,” she said.

Hobson is thankful that the Dennis and Anne Beaver Foundation provided the means for she and the other students to participate in this program.

“That was very generous of them,” she said. “A lot of people make it to a certain status and don’t give back or pull others up with them. They’ve done that and they’ve done it well. I’m appreciative to be here at this time when they’ve offered this opportunity.”

While the foundation has supported student trips to France since its establishment over 25 years ago, Beaver — who holds a French degree from CSU Northridge — said this was the first time they’ve sent students to the Paris School of Business.