Shatrela Washington-Hubbard, Dean of Brenau University’s Jacobs College of Business and Media, recently discussed with a group of Gainesville businesspeople her ideas for expanding industry partnerships with the college.
She did so at the Small Business Seminar, an event hosted by the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce. She talked about the importance of small businesses partnering with higher education institutions to expand their capabilities.
“Small businesses often don’t have enough personnel to expand their capabilities, so I suggested that they consider partnering with higher education institutions,” Washington-Hubbard said. “By doing so, students can gain practical experience while businesses can fulfill some of their needs. My goal is to ensure that small businesses realize that students need the opportunities to have hands-on experience, and small businesses can expand their capabilities while also developing a talent pipeline.”
The Jacobs College is focused on partnering with industry partners to provide students with experiential learning opportunities through work-based learning, internships and research, Washington-Hubbard said.
Washington-Hubbard also served as a panelist at a leadership and artificial intelligence forum organized by the chamber on Oct. 13. She discussed the need to prepare students to meet industry demands as new technologies evolve.
“We cannot ignore that artificial intelligence is here to stay and that industries are looking for students who have a skill set to work with it and other emerging technologies,” she said. “With that, we want to ensure that students are prepared for the new characteristics of entry-level positions. We want to ensure that they have some level of training before graduating and that they are prepared at a high level so that our graduates are competitive and prepared for high-caliber positions within the workforce.”