{"id":74713,"date":"2019-09-25T10:03:38","date_gmt":"2019-09-25T14:03:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=74713"},"modified":"2024-07-29T12:07:32","modified_gmt":"2024-07-29T16:07:32","slug":"business-cultural-trip-to-mexico-broadens-perspective-of-wright-state-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2019\/09\/25\/business-cultural-trip-to-mexico-broadens-perspective-of-wright-state-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Business, cultural trip to Mexico broadens perspective of Wright State students"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Wright State students relaxing at the town square in Puebla, Mexico.<\/p><\/div>\n

Tours of cement, bakery and coffee companies, visits to pyramids and cathedrals, and culinary experiences highlighted a trip to Mexico by 11 Wright State University students.<\/p>\n

The Ambassador \u201cHow to Do Business in Mexico\u201d trip ran from Aug. 8 to 17 and included stops in Mexico City and the cities of Puebla and Cholula in central Mexico.<\/p>\n

The eight graduate students and three undergrads were led by John Martin, professor of strategic management in the Raj Soin College of Business<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe learning experience was far beyond what I could have imagined,\u201d said student Maria Schmitz. \u201cIt was an awesome mix of manufacturing, business, culture and history that gave me a broader perspective of the global business climate.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was a stop at CEMEX, the second largest building materials firm in the world, with businesses in 50 countries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was never presented with an opportunity to visit a manufacturing facility until this trip,\u201d said student T.J. Klopfstein. \u201cI was exposed to aspects of business that I had only read about and it really helped me connect the dots.\u201d<\/p>\n

The students also toured Grupo Bimbo, the world\u2019s largest baking company, with brands such as Oroweat, Sara Lee, Wonder Bread, Thomas Muffins, Ball Park Franks, Boboli Pizza and Entenmann\u2019s. In addition, the group visited The Italian Coffee Company, a privately owned family operation with over 400 locations in Mexico.\u201cIt was awesome to see manufacturing facilities and have an open discussion with local businesses on the challenges they face,\u201d said Schmitz.<\/p>\n

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Wright State University students getting culinary lessons in Puebla, Mexico.<\/p><\/div>\n

The students attended lectures on cross-cultural communication, the construct of happiness, international trade relations between the United States and Mexico, and how Puebla attracted Audi to build the company\u2019s Audi Q5 manufacturing plant.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was overall shocked by just how advanced some of the businesses we toured were,\u201d said student Jennifer Ebright. \u201cThey had very modern and large machinery as opposed to having people carry out most of the day-to-day tasks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cultural experiences included climbing the Teotihuacan Pyramids, touring the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City and visiting the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trip was a great cultural adventure of a foreign country with rich history,\u201d said student Craig Mestemaker. \u201cIt was amazing to see Mexico\u2019s rich Catholic beliefs through their magnificent shrines and cathedrals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cultural activities also included taking a boat ride through the Xochimilco Floating Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage site; touring churches and a library in the State of Puebla; and visiting the pyramid and cathedral in Cholula.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Mexican culture is definitely warm and inviting, almost feels like you are a part of their family,\u201d said student Kellyn White. \u201cI found a different side of me on this trip, a much stronger and mature side.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the first time, students took part in a cooking class at a culinary school. And they took a bus to El Vilsito Taquerias, an auto shop and taco stand featured in the Netflix series \u201cTaco Chronicles.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Wright State students asking questions of the chief operations officer for The Italian Coffee Company.<\/p><\/div>\n

Ebright said the students were offered a variety of delicious cuisine at inexpensive prices during the trip. She left with a much different view of Mexico than she anticipated.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere I expected to see pollution and crime, I found scenic views and a rustic paradise,\u201d she said. \u201cWhere I expected to find an impoverished country, I found a place full of color with astonishing murals and architecture.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another trip to Mexico is scheduled for August 2020. To learn more or register, visit the University Center for International Education website<\/a>\u00a0or contact Martin at john.a.martin@wright.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Eleven students participated in the Ambassador \u201cHow to Do Business in Mexico\u201d trip to Mexico City, Puebla and Cholula. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":74721,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,748,725,715,4295,4908,2113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-74713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-business","category-home-news-sidebar","category-news","category-study-abroad","category-supply-chain-management-marketing-and-management","category-university-center-for-international-education"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74713"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74745,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74713\/revisions\/74745"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}