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- Thefts disrupt Skaptopara life
- Follow up: Allocation of Student Activity Fee raises concerns
- “Culture Fusion” brings interns from Japan, China and Georgia to Blagoevgrad
- Short travel guide of the region
- Update: Cable malfunction sets off fire alarm in the middle of the night
- Martenitsi
- The contra revolution of the smokers
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| Christopher Stone: “This is the most changeable time in the history of the world.” |
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| Profiles |
| Written by Evgenia Koseva |
| Sunday, 31 January 2010 20:05 |
 photos by Venelina Miteva and from personal archive Christopher Stone is a visiting professor in the business department who is teaching Organizational Theory and Behavior, and International Strategic Management and Policy. He was born and raised in Philadelphia. Professor Stone spent most of his adult life in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has worked in England, the Netherlands, Japan, and Canada. He has a Ph.D. in Counseling and Educational Psychology from Penn State University, Pennsylvania. He started out his professional life in academia when he began teaching at the University of Wisconsin and later on at Alverno College, Milwaukee. Before teaching he has worked for General Electric, Deluxe Corporation, Hewitt, and Midwest Airlines. Why did you choose to come to AUBG? Dean Sullivan had posted an opening for a business professor to teach in the area of Organizational Theory and Behavior, so I applied for this job. He wrote back and said that they were not sure if the position is going to be funded. I have done business work over many places, but mostly over those, where everybody who wants a global business experience goes. Bulgaria is an emerging economy, an emerging culture, emerging people. There is a lot of excitement here. The future for Bulgaria, I think, is yet unformed. I came here because I thought it was different and it would be harder. Bulgaria was more challenging and that is what made it more interesting. What do you like and dislike most about Bulgaria? Things are rather inexpensive here, relative to the rest of the world. The quality of food is very good. I really appreciate the patience of people with the language barrier. I realized that Bulgaria's infrastructure is still suffering from, I guess, Soviet times. Some of the streets need to be repaired. Some of the sidewalks are really hard to walk on. You have to look down, if you do not want to fall. There is something about Bulgaria that I found shocking: how many people smoke here. I am saddened by this fact. I really wish that they will start a national campaign to get people to stop smoking. It is a life issue, but is deeply connected to the ability of the society to grow economically.
What do you think about the students in AUBG? Do they differ from the students in other universities? I am used to teaching adult students, who are full-time working and even have babies. They were part-time students. Students at AUBG are very bright. They are assertive, kind of quiet, and I want to energize them to participate more in the class process. It is exciting and I am falling in love with the students. They are interested in learning. They work hard. Students are fun. Do your future plans include staying at AUBG? No. I have a one semester teaching opportunity. For now, I do not plan on staying more. Do you have any advice for AUBG students? I want to advise students to worry less for their future career and care more about what they learn because I am confident that they will change careers more than once. There are some other lessons that should be learned at this time that are in very short supply in business: learning to be kind, to be generous, and to care about people who do not have as much as you do. I would encourage students to take some risks, to learn about things that you will not learn at school, and to be open.
What are your hobbies? My Harley Davidson is not my first love, but it is one of my loves. I did not learn to ride a motorcycle until I was 52. The first time I rode one was on the back of my cousin when I was 12. It took me 40 years to decide to have that much fun. That is too long to wait, but I am glad I started it. |
Comments
THINK PEOPLE! THINK!
I.K
So the US is yet to emerge as a culture, I guess?! How could he speak like that! There is something called dignity, and by accident, through some 15 centuries of national history we, Bulgarians, have created one such feeling of dignity and much more... Just, I know not many people are going to read this, so I'm not going to spend more time on this.
P.S. As a grown and well educated person, I thought the professor would have learned not to make unprepared statements...