ITU Journal - Volume I, Issue III, Summer 2011

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Presented by the Business Administration Department

With great pleasure we would like to report on the news of our university (ITU)’s candidacy for accredita-tion status from the Western Association for Schools and Colleges (WASC) Accrediting Commission.

In a letter to ITU President Yau-Gene Chan, dated July 5, 2011, the Commission granted ITU “the status of candidacy for accreditation.” Based on its assessment, the commission cited the accomplishment by ITU of “significant progress,” and outlined some improvement focus points to be addressed prior to the Commission’s special visit, to take place in the fall of 2012.

WASC is one of six associations that provide accrediting standardization for elementary, secondary, and post-secondary education. The process of accreditation starts with the institution’s review of its own operation. Through peer review and a continual self-examination, the candidate is empowered to identify its strengths as well as its insufficient procedures. The institution then implements the required improvements.

The staff and faculty of ITU are indeed excited about the WASC candidacy news. At the same time, they are committed to the lofty goal of providing effective grad-uate-level education in accordance with WASC stan-dards. As the news was received around the campus, professors, students, and administrative staff, reflected on the candidacy news and its implications.

Approximately 70% of ITU students polled expressed increased pride, confidence and trust in their university

WASC Candidacy for ITU Announced

International Technological University

DUAL-MOTIVE THEORY INNOVATION & CREATIVITY ENGINEERING STUDENTS FOR SUCCESS

ITU’s Good Neighbor Program Launches!Thus far, 2011 has been an eventful year for ITU. With our WASC candidacy status granted, and our new campus located in exciting downtown San Jose, ITU found it high time to befriend our new neighbors. Conceived by Dr. Greg O’Brien, Dean of Advanced Graduate Studies & Research, as a way to build relationships with local businesses, the Good Neighbor Program has blossomed into a wonderful partnership between ITU and the San Jose/Silicon Valley community.

“I want to put a ding in the universe” ~ Steve Jobs

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Suman Bhargava with Sonny, owner of “The Brit”

Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011

Editor-in-Chief:Dr. Amal Mougharbel

Manager/Design:Hubert Chang

Editorial Board:Dr. Ahmad Reza ChekeniBarbara ArnoldussenPatricia Wiggin

Coordinator:Charitha Valluri

Contributors:Ahmad Shaar Bapu Rao Srigadde

The views expressed in articles are those of the writers only and not of ITU or the ITU Journal. ITU Journal is not responsible for accuracy of informa-tion cited in the news and events. The Editorial Board reserves the right to edit submissions, with contributions capped at 400 words. Plagiarized sub-missions will be discarded.

Contact: [email protected]

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University

http://itu.edu

355 W San Fernando StSan Jose, CA 95113

TEAM

Continuing the Chan LegacyYau-Gene Chan is the President/CEO of ITU. As the son of Dr. Shu-Park Chan—founder of ITU—he represents the third generation of a family leg-acy dedicated to education. In partnership with Dr. Gerald A. Cory Jr., Mr. Chan has successfully restored financial stability to the institution. As Presi-dent and CEO, he frequently travels throughout Asia to develop growth opportunities for the university.

Mr. Chan graduated with honors from the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology. He earned his Masters of Fine Arts in acting at UCLA, where he received the Jack Nicholson Prize and the Edna Yu Han Fellowship. Mr. Chan’s first conference paper on Dual Motive Theory

and its application to Chinese rule in the Warlord era was presented at the Western Economic As-sociation International’s Pacific Rim Economic Conference in Beijing, China.

In addition to teaching technical writing and public speaking courses at ITU, Mr. Chan has taught Acuflo (a movement and alignment technique) and acting classes for Fine Arts Masters programs at USC and UCLA. Mr. Chan was a member of the founding team of USC’s Integrated Media Systems Center, which received an $88 million National Science Foundation grant to become one of five national Engineering Research Centers. He has acted in films such as Absolute Power, The Pest, and Replacement Killers, and in television shows such as Baywatch, NYPD Blue and X-Files.

Mr. Chan’s current most important role is his inspiring work as President and CEO, guiding the fu-ture of ITU. Mr. Chan reflected on the WASC candidacy news: “In our interactions with WASC and the panels – sometimes feedback is uncomfortable but always accurate. Their detailed output to us makes ITU better, as an institution, to stand the test of time. This candidacy speaks to the vision and intention of my father, Shu-Park Chan.”

WASC Candidacy Announcedas a result of hearing the WASC candidacy news. Others voiced positive feelings about the news and the potential effect it will have on their graduate diploma and career. One student commented in this way: “It (candidacy) adds credibility to the university; WASC is a third party and its opinions aren’t biased or influenced by someone else”.

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Yau-Gene Chan, President & CEO

Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011International Technological University

Education & Experience BY AHMAD REZA CHEKENI, PHD

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Amal Mougharbel, PhD, Chair of the ITU Busi-ness Administration Department, was admitted to the WASC Assessment Leadership Academy program. The program provides professional development in higher education training with an emphasis on effective communication and feedback during the assessment process.

The academy prepares university professionals to offer seminars, discussion, and supervision. It focuses on assessment as a means to support student learning and encourages understand-ing of the assessment’s principles, of the student learning theories, of institutional development and faculty teaching strategies.

ITU Joins WASC Assessment Leadership AcademyBY AMAL MOUGHARBEL, PHD

Attendees of the WASC Assessment Leadership Academy Program

International Technological University

The following article is written based on the abstracts distributed at the corresponding Conferences.

Gerald A. Cory, Jr. PhD., Liz Li, PhD., Amal Mougharbel, PhD., Yau-Gene Chan, and Mikel Duffy attended the Western Economic As-sociation international (WEAI)conference in San Diego, and the International Association for Research in Economic Psychology (IAREP) conference in Exeter, Eng-land, in June and July 2011. The team presented papers on Dual Motive Theory (DMT) from differ-ent perspectives. Dr. Cory’s paper discussed the emergence of DMT in behavioral economics. Since its introduc-tion in 1999 with the publication of The Reciprocal Modular Brain in Economics and Politics (Ple-num), DMT, linking economics with evolutionary neuroscience, defines social exchange (to include economics) as an emergent expression of our mammalian neural architecture driven by two primary motives, Ego and Empathy or self- and other-interest. In the recent decade, DMT has emerged as an alternative to the existing single motive theory of classical Western economics in behavioral economics. Numerous scholars have contributed to its development. It has attracted interest in emergent econo-mies such as China, and the Middle East, and offers to provide linkage between Eastern and Western economic thinking. DMT has been the topic of numerous recent publications, to include two chapters in the Handbook of Contemporary Behavioral Economics (MESharpe 2006) and a section dedicated to it in the Journal of Socio-Economics (August 2006).

Dr. Li and Yau-Gene Chan’s paper explored the impact of DMT on the economics of social networking. The global reach of so-cial networking in the most recent decades is the most dramatic extension of the IT revolution. The impulse to social network-ing is a direct expression of the recently emergent psychological concept of the social brain, which, in its turn has been defined in terms of the dual motives of Ego and Empathy or self- and

other-interest that emerge from our mammalian neural architec-ture as the foundation of human social exchange. The global eco-nomic implications of this socio-economic phenomenon will be explored and assessed. Dr. Mougharbel and Mikel Duffy’s paper was on the Core Values of Accounting, Finance and Eco-nomics in the Light of the Dual Motive Theory. The paper fo-cused on the important role of

the DMT in Behavioral Economics, accounting and finance. The concept of behavioral economics explains the acts that one can take in an economy, and the human behavior as a result of the double motive characterized by one’s self- and other-interest. Similar motives are emphasized by the DMT, which in turn ex-plain the Ego and the Empathy of the human behavior. The core values of accounting – Integrity, Reliability, and Accountability, which find a critical place in Behavioral Economics, demonstrate the relation of the DMT and the evolution of the human brain to evaluate ethical behavior. The hypothesis of Integrity, Reliabil-ity, and Accountability was developed and continued because of the significant relationship of the core values with the brain that has evolved to evaluate ethical or fraudulent cases.

Behavioral Economics and the Impact of Dual Motive TheoryBY AMAL MOUGHARBEL, PHD

WEAI held at San Diego Marriott Marquis, and IAREP held at Exeter University, England.

Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011

Did You Know?Recently, I attended a two-day conference on creating global busi-ness opportunities, with an emphasis on high tech, hard work, and innovation. Industries highlighted during the weekend included pharmaceutical companies, federal defense, aeronautics, travel, filmmaking, and more.

Throughout the conference I reflected, almost without premedita-tion, on two of the courses I took at ITU during the last year: DBA 915, Creativity: A Process Oriented Approach, and DBA 916, Creativ-ity and Innovation: Culture of Group Dynamics, both taught by Dr. Chekeni. In these classes we discussed a host of issues involved in creativity: aspects involved in the creating such as insight, recogni-tion, and incubation of an idea.

Activities and class discussions in the first course ranged from the person’s conscious effort (usually underestimated in anecdotal ex-planations of creativity), to the biological basis that could be com-pared to the neural circuits. Thus, creative individuals are unusually hypersensitive to their environment. Stimuli from our environment are bombarding all of us all the time, but the highly creative persons may recoil from overstimulation—their senses are already on “Level Orange”, high alert.

The conference provided an opportunity for me to be a witness to the creative people’s demeanor. A filmmaker in particular, spoke of working in settings where people had flashy ideas but were lacking unique approaches. He did not give long answers to questions, but provided concise, thoughtful responses.

Another frequent message was team collaboration on the best ideas. Based on one of the themes of the second course, strengths and differences within a group allow the team to perform, innovate and thrive. One conference speaker spoke about a troubling trend in middle-manager behavior: the lack of honest feedback to upper-level management. He described how innovation is stymied when there is no disagreement, and this becomes is a stumbling block to flushing out best business practices that are essential in a global en-vironment.

Over and again, conference speakers equated success with innova-tion. One pharmaceutical executive described entrepreneurship as “an irrational act, where innovation is key”. The filmmaker described the pressure to produce films about money and glamour but shared his successful formula: an original story. A venture capitalist said in-novation is the “intersection of invention and insight, leading to so-cial and economic value”.

Remarkably, reflecting on creativity and business innovation at this conference provided a wonderful opportunity for me to see class-room ideas at work.

Many thanks to ITU Professor Dr. Subba Yantra who, as a part of the Spring Consumer Behavior class (MKTN 957), sponsored students to attend the Telegu Association of North America Business Conference, Santa Clara CA, July 2-3, 2011.

Seeing Creativity and Innovation at WorkBY PATRICIA WIGGIN

SAP AllianceSAP University Alliances has approved six of ITU’s SAP courses:• Accounting Information Systems • Introduction to ERP Systems using SAP• ABAP - Advanced Business Application Programming• Enterprise Portal technology using NetWeaver• Enterprise procurement processes• Sales order management with ERP

Upon completing a minimum of three approved SAP courses, with a “B” or higher grade, students receive an SAP Student Recognition Award (previously known as the SAP Certificate), signed by the SAP University Alliances program manager and the Chair of the ITU Business Administration Department. The purpose of this recognition award is to distinguish students for their excellent performance.

WASC AssessmentAs a member of the WASC Assessment Leadership Academy Program, ITU will focus on the students learning that con-tributes to creative work, ultimate learning and community participation. The students learning goals are developed for individual courses or for programs. The learning goals are in response to two questions: What do we want the students to learn when they finish a course or a program? And, how do we want the students to apply what they learn? The first ques-tion is an outcome based on the intersection between the course/program content and required workplace skills. The second question is about the necessary competencies learned in the course/program and how to apply them effectively in the workplace.

Business Administration Website LaunchesSeptember marks the launch month of ITU’s Business Ad-ministration Department’s website. The website features extended details about the department’s faculty, study plans, assessment, and more. The website’s design was created by ITU’s Web & Graphics Designer, Barbara Gini and the website development team. The site’s layout and colors are to convey a modern and professional feel, while the newly designed logo represents the department’s mission to build and coach successful students for industry-related careers.

Have a look at the site at http://business.itu.edu.

About Student LearningEvery Fall ITU offers Corporate Finance, which is core require-ment course that all Business students must complete. The financial skills and knowledge students learn during the term are highlighted in the following Corporate Finance Learning Outcomes (CLOs): 1. Know the basic ability to apply financial concepts, models and analytical techniques to both the aca-demic and practiced environments. 2. Identify relationships between the Business Plan, Finance Plan and business growth. 3. Describe Management and Leadership roles associated with Finance, specifically, how financial leadership differs from financial management. Understand how finance leadership can build the equity-value of a company.

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International Technological University Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011

May Huang, PhD., is a professor and Chair of the Electri-cal Engineering department at ITU. Dr. Huang is also a professor at China’s Peking University (PKU) School of Software and Microelectronics. She leads a joint research team with members from ITU and PKU. Dr. Huang brings more than 20 years of Silicon Valley Integrated Circuit (IC) design and software design experience to her work. She is a former Principal Design Engineer and Project Man-ager for Virtual Silicon Technology, Hitachi Semiconductor America and VLSI Technology.

Dr. Huang holds a bachelor’s degree from South China University of Technology, a master’s from Santa Clara University and a doctorate from ITU, all in electrical engi-neering. She achieved her master and PhD degrees under the supervision of ITU founder, Dr. Shu-Park Chan. After transferring her PhD study from Santa Clara University to ITU for support, Dr. Huang became the first PhD graduate at ITU. She is a member of Institute of Electrical & Elec-tronic Engineers working group and was on the balloting committees of VITAL, Verilog and VHDL Analog Extension. She also taught about chip design in Tsinghua University, China. Her research expertise is in IC design methodology and artificial intelligence.

Dr. Huang considers her best project as when she was involved in designing computer Central Processing Units (CPUs). She received a Chinese government national 3rd place prize in advance achievement in 1986 for an auto-matic information management system design. She also received a second place award in 1984 for an automatic programming system at the China national science and technology committee.

Engineering Students for Success

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Dr. Huang with ITU’s Founder/President Emeritus and Chief Aca-demics Officer/Dean of FacultyLeft to Right: Dr. Shu-Park Chan, Dr. May Huang, Dr. Liz Li

Dr. Huang & the Electrical Engineering department’s AI Research LabBack Row (L-R): Chen Yang, Lei Shu, Fan Zhao, Matthew JinFront Row (L-R): Hu Xu, Dr. May Huang, Xiaolan Bai

ITU’s Electrical Engineering (EE) department has created a functional version of their highly anticipated gestural-control application. Developed by the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Re-search Lab, the application allows individuals to interact with graphical user interface (GUI) through specified movements, also referred to as “gestures”.

The process begins with a Red, Green, Blue Distance (RGB-D) camera capturing an user’s gesture. Next, the gesture is converted into raw data or code, and translated into com-puter functions. Finally, the user sees his desired result on a screen.

The reaction of gesture manipulation can be customized. For example, the feature of printing a document can be achieved by simply moving your hand to drag an on-screen file onto a printer icon. The team achieved this real-time application through internally-developed algorithms. The first usage of this research will give ITU students & visitors an interactive and convenient access point to university-related information. This cutting-edge research will provide incalculable applications in the future.

Push to Start

International Technological University

BY HUBERT CHANG

Member of AI Lab interacting with gestural software

Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011

ITU’s Career Services Center has been proactively working with students and industry experts to provide ca-reer services and opportunities. We have some recent news to share with you:

CDC becomes CSC…The Academic Quality Committee (AQC) has decided on a new name for the Career Development Center: the Career Services Center (CSC). This change creates a name more in line with its mission statement as a service-orient-ed center.

Career Fair on November 4thCSC is hosting a day long Career Fair/ Job Fair, on Friday, Novem-ber 4th. This event is exclusively for ITU students. We are expect-ing around 50 companies to participate in this event, so come with copies of your resume. If you want professional help or you don’t know where to start, attend our CSC workshops (see be-low).

CSC workshops begin….The CSC will start workshops on various topics, either in combi-nation with or conducted before Joint Seminar every Wednes-day 5:15 PM - 6:30 PM. These workshops will prepare you for the Career Fair in November or will feature skills to help you compete in the current job market.

For more information, check our website http://csc.itu.edu or http://itu.edu/index.php/news/.

Get Your Careers!BY BAPU RAO SRIGADDE

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ITU’s Good Neighbor Program

JOIN THE DISCUSSION:Please send your questions, com-ments, suggestions or submissions to [email protected].

TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ITU, VISIT WWW.ITU.EDU.

ISSN: 2161-8054Please remember to recycle!

Welcome to Taiwan - located on the southwestern edge of the Pacific Ocean. In the past, she was known as “Formosa”, a Portuguese name, meaning “Beautiful Island”. Even with lim-ited land-space, Taiwan possesses great natural landscapes, cultural treasures, and energetic, friendly people.

Taiwan doesn’t have rich natural resources like other coun-tries; but, thanks to her peoples’ creativity, she boasts many brilliant records. Taiwan is widely-known for the manufac-turing of various goods from tennis rackets, shoes, textiles, bicycles to computers, household appliances, petrochemi-cals, semiconductors and steel. The island also has amazing mountains, unpolluted beaches, and convenient public transportation. Any Taiwanese you meet will treat you as family and make you feel right at home.

A Fascinating Island -- Taiwan!BY HSIFEN “COCO” HSU

From Left to Right: Inside of a Taipei Metro (MRT) train, Taipei 101, and Shih Lin Nightmarket

International Technological University

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According to The Good Neighbor Program website, this part-nership “is designed to provide [ITU] students with discounts or other incentives from merchants and professional service providers”. Suman Bhargava, ITU Marketing Specialist, states the purpose and ideals as “bringing businesses together… bringing benefits to ITU… and making students feel special!” However, this program is not only for our student body, but available to ITU staff and faculty alike.

Since the official launch date of July 7, 2011, the program has been quietly growing. As of August 31st, Suman had managed to sign agreements with over 20 establishments throughout San Jose, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale, and anticipates 40-50 total by the end of the year.

This new program is an invigorating movement between the school and the city encouraging our students, staff, and fac-ulty to settle into the bustling world of downtown San Jose. It is also a display of how two entities can aid one another to grow despite the economic realities affecting the entire world. For more information go to http://itu.edu/goodneighbor.

MBA Healthcare Management students in Professor Barbara Ar-noldussen’s Organizational Development class took a tour of the Mountain View location of El Camino Hospital on July 9, 2011. Tour arranged by Judy Twitchell, ECH Director of Community Relations. Photographer: ITU student Mrudu Singhal.

Students Visit El Camino Hospital

Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer/Fall 2011