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Marietta College students learn from alumnus working as an expat in Namibia

by Gi Smith

Marietta, OH (11/04/2024) — Students in Professor Grace Johnson's Business in Global Contexts course as well as Dr. Susan Peterson's Engineering Economics course got the chance to hear from William Bates '20 on living and working overseas. Appointed to work on a special team from Chevron, Bates now is based in the Republic of Namibia in southwest Africa. While on his 28-day rotation back in the States, Bates was gracious to share his time and experience with both classes of Marietta students.

Johnson noticed Bates' new work location one afternoon while looking through alumni LinkedIn pages.

"As I am teaching international business this semester, I thought it would be meaningful for my students to directly hear from a Marietta alumnus who also is presently working as an expat," Johnson said, referring to the term used in business to describe employees who work and live outside of their home countries for extended periods of time. "When William accepted my offer to speak to my international business students, he added that he would be back in Ohio until early November and that he could come to campus to talk with the students instead of virtually on a Zoom video call. I was thrilled."

Johnson communicated her plan to the Petroleum Engineering faculty to bring Bates to campus. Dr. Peterson said she wanted her engineering students to join the classroom conversation, too.

"Returning to the beautiful Marietta College was a wonderful experience, as I had the opportunity to speak with both international business and petroleum engineering students and faculty," Bates said. "The campus was just as vibrant and welcoming as I remembered, fostering an environment of curiosity and ambition. Sharing insights with such engaged students and knowledgeable faculty made the visit truly rewarding."

Finance major Will Freson '26 (Hamilton, Ohio) said Bates covered many topics ranging from how Namibian culture differed from our own to the working conditions he encountered.

"Overall, it was very interesting to see the direct correlation between the material Professor Johnson is teaching us and what was happening in William's life overseas," Freson said.

Through the generosity of alumni such as Bates, MC students are exposed to global business subjects even while they sit inside a Marietta College classroom. And in this case, the Long Blue Line stretches to the African continent.

Located in Marietta, Ohio, at the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio rivers, Marietta College is a four-year liberal arts college. Tracing its roots to the Muskingum Academy back in 1797, the College was officially chartered in 1835. Today Marietta College serves a body of 1,200 full-time students. The College offers more than 50 majors and is consistently ranked as one of the top regional comprehensive colleges by U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review, as well as one of the nation's best by Forbes.com. Marietta was selected seventh in the nation according to the Brookings Institution's rankings of colleges by their highest value added, regardless of major.

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William Bates, a 2020 graduate from Marietta College, speaks to current students about working internationally.

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