Shenandoah University Students Presented With Governor's International Marketing Award

RICHMOND - The Virginia Economic Development Partnership today announced that a team of graduate business students from Shenandoah University have received the Governor’s Award for Excellence for their participation in the Virginia Economic Development Partnership’s (VEDP) Global Market Research (GMR) program. Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Michael J. Schewel presented the award to the winning students and their professor at the 54th Virginia Conference on World Trade, October 24, 2002 in Williamsburg.

“Through the GMR program, university students gain practical experience while Virginia companies broaden their understanding of how to profitably access global markets,” said Mark R. Kilduff, Executive Director of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. “I applaud everyone that participated in this year’s successful GMR program.”

Every year, the GMR program teams approximately 30 groups of graduate business students from Virginia’s colleges and universities, as well as foreign universities, with companies in the state interested in expanding their export sales programs. These students, supervised by professors and supported by VEDP trade managers, provide companies with an international marketing plan.

The GMR team from Shenandoah University won the award for their work with Resolution Resources, Inc. (RRI) of Warrenton, Virginia. Established in 1992, RRI uses imaging technologies for environmental engineering, water resources and geo-technical applications. RRI has pioneered the use of subsurface imaging for numerous environmental applications. Shenandoah University’s study focused on RRI’s entry into new global markets for their imaging technologies.

“This award was indeed an honor for RRI,” said Mary-Linda Adams, CEO of RRI. “The enthusiasm and dedication of the students and faculty at Shenandoah University, with clear recommendations, along with VEDP’s support has helped us to focus our international marketing direction.”

The GMR program serves as a valuable instrument for the participating companies and students. The selection of the awards was made from projects undertaken during the fall 2001 and spring 2002 semesters. The GMR program has served over 430 projects since it originated in 1988. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, Virginia exports of goods, services and commodities totaled $16.4 billion and supported 201,500 jobs in 2001.