Oklahoma Baptist University officially “inhabited” Oklahoma City Jan. 23 with the grand opening of the university’s International Graduate School in the Momentum Building at 111 N. Harrison Ave., in the city’s growing “Triangle District” just north of Bricktown.
During a short program capped by a ribbon-cutting ceremony, OBU President Mark Brister said, “This celebration marks a significant step for OBU as we augment our undergraduate programs with a graduate school which will offer an array of opportunities in coming years. We are embracing the vision of the International Graduate School after spending a great deal of time focusing on what would best suit our mission and our historic strengths.”
Brister added OBU has “gained a national reputation for quality and value. We offer an undergraduate education (program) which has helped equip leaders for Oklahoma, our nation and the world. The vision has expanded throughout our history. Today, we are asking Oklahoma City’s business community to catch a new vision and be part of OBU’s International Graduate School.”
The OBU-IGS offers a master of business administration (MBA) degree program. The 18-month program includes classes one night per week and one Saturday per course. The program’s first class will graduate in September 2008. Courses are taught by faculty from OBU’s Paul Dickinson School of Business.
Marian Combs is director of the OBU-IGS.
“OBU has a creative vision for an MBA program that is unlike any other in the Oklahoma City metro area to date,” Combs said, adding that the international aspect is not limited to the program’s name. “The graduate approach is expanding on OBU’s history of international involvement, which has included development of educational and business enterprises in Brazil and Russia in the past 15 years. An international trip is included in regular tuition for all students. Successful business people today must have a global perspective, and OBU wants to prepare students for success.”
The Momentum Building is owned by Momentum Partners, and is marketed by UrbanWorks, a local development group. The OBU-IGS occupies the second floor of the building, which is in an ideal location just off the I-235/I-40/I-35 interchange.
“The OBU MBA program is relevant, convenient and practical,” Brister said, pointing out that it is an innovative approach to the marketplace, convenient to students who maintain full-time jobs and practical to those students who “will find study and relationships which will prove beneficial for their daily work.”
In addition to the MBA program, OBU is seeking approval for a master’s degree in nursing, which also would be housed at the IGS.
“OBU was the first college in the state to offer a baccalaureate program in nursing, and we are confident we can offer strong graduate courses to help address our nation’s nursing shortage,” Brister said.”
More information about the MBA program is available by calling Combs at 405/343-9362, or at www.igs.okbu.edu.
