DonDon Larsen, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Management
College of Business

 

Recognized for the special bond and dedication to MSUB’s international students, Don Larsen, Ph.D., is this year’s Promoting International Student Success Award recipient.

Don, whose service to MSUB spans 15 years, says international students, like non-traditional students, add an exciting dimension to the classroom.

“It leads to more discussion and students get so much more when there are other perspectives and outside experience brought into and shared with the class,” Don said.

During his Human Resource Management class, for instance, international students offer a context that many American students simply do not have.

“I love for them to talk about their work experience in their home country,” Don said. “While I’m always surprised at how much is similar in the workplace, oftentimes their experience is much different.”

He tells a story about a student from Saudi Arabia who worked as courier. When asked what the biggest workplace concern he had was, the student answered, “You don’t want to hit a camel.”

Montanans are well aware the risks of hitting wildlife on the open road but the classroom discussion highlights how businesses may deal with similar problems but in entirely different venues.

A student was impressed with how well Don connected with everyone. This student had an opportunity to present information about the German Health System during Human Resource Management.

“He shows special interest to our culture, shares stories, and really puts effort into involving us in his lectures,” the student said. “I personally experienced his help a lot of times already. He used my experiences from Europe to show the class how we do certain things in Germany.”

Don is truly an inspiration for MSUB as he goes above and beyond in supporting our international students.