Press Release

Jim Kolbe joins UA faculty

Former U.S. Representative (Ariz.) passes the torch to the next generation in a course offered jointly by the Eller College of Management and the James E. Rogers College of Law

TUCSON, Ariz. – October 29, 2007 – In January, former Congressman Jim Kolbe left the Beltway in Washington D.C., carrying a lifetime of experience on Capitol Hill back to his home in the desert. After 22 years of representing Arizona’s eighth congressional district, Kolbe is passing the torch to the next generation of business executives and lawyers at The University of Arizona.

This fall, Kolbe entered the classroom as an adjunct instructor at The University of Arizona to teach Trade and Globalization in the 21st Century, a course designed for both MBA and law students. The course is jointly offered by the Eller College Management and the James E. Rogers College of Law.

Twenty-six students are enrolled in the graduate level course, which focuses on policies that promote global economic development, particularly how the U.S. and other developed nations can help less-developed nations reduce poverty and become more competitive. It also examines current social and economic issues related to globalization and how these forces affect trade policy in the U.S. and abroad.

“Representative Kolbe has not only lived to experience the policies and effects of international trade, he’s also made much of the history himself,” said MBA student Joshua Scott. “I have realized that I never fully understood the consequences of trade in my own life, let alone in international affairs.”

“Not only does Representative Kolbe bring a unique perspective to the classroom, he brings recent perspective,” said MBA student Gregory Goodman. “Rep. Kolbe’s lengthy service in Congress and recent retirement provide a contemporary perspective as well as a historical context on trade and trade policy.”

As a U.S. congressman, Jim Kolbe represented the eighth congressional district for 22 years, from 1985 to 2007. An ardent advocate of free trade, Kolbe introduced a resolution calling for a U.S.-Mexico free trade agreement several years before the countries advocated for an agreement. He was instrumental in supporting normal trade relations status for China, in advocating the Central American Free Trade Agreement, and supporting trade negotiating authority for the president.

In addition to teaching at UA, Kolbe is a Senior Transatlantic Fellow for the German Marshall Fund of the United States. He advises on trade matters as well as issues of effectiveness of U.S. assistance to foreign countries, on U.S. – E.U. relationships, and on migration and its relationship to development. 

The Eller College of Management at The University of Arizona is internationally recognized for pioneering research, innovative curriculum, distinguished faculty, excellence in entrepreneurship, and social responsibility. U.S.News & World Report ranks the Eller undergraduate program #12 among public business schools and five of its departments are among the top 25 — Entrepreneurship, MIS, Marketing, Management and Organizations, and Accounting. The MPA program in the School of Public Administration and Policy ranks in the top 50. Financial Times ranks the Eller MBA full-time program #27 in the U.S. and #57 in the world, and Forbes ranks the program among the top 50 nationwide. The College leads the nation’s business schools in generating grant funds for research. In addition to a full-time MBA program, the Eller College offers an evening MBA program, and the Eller Executive MBA. The Eller College of Management supports more than 5,100 undergraduate and 600 graduate students on the UA campus in beautiful Tucson, Arizona.

Press Contact:
Linda Herrick, Eller College Public Relations and Events Coordinator
520.626.2590, news@eller.arizona.edu