b'STUDY ABROADwho partnered with Franz to develop the programand still oversees all operations from the host universitys perspective. A new approachThe programs origins can be traced back to Franz talking with Tom Miller, a former finance professor at Trulaske. At the time, Miller oversaw coordinating the sign up for a four-week summer consortium program that was taking place in Paderno, Italy, among approximately 30 universitiesand most of the study abroad programs were run out of the International Programs Office at Mizzou.Hey, Chuck, why are we sending students over there?, Franz remembered of the conversation with Miller. Weve got a connection over there. A Second Home:Why dont we see if we can start a program and send students directly over there and do our own BERGAMO PARTNERSHIP CONTINUESprogram? I said. OK, that sounds good to me. Each class, consisting of about 40 students from Students from the The connection was the late Glenn Pierce, an Italian TO THRIVE 20 YEARS LATER professor at Mizzou who was friends with a businesseach school, is taught by professors from each insti- University of Missouri professor at the University of Bergamo. In 2001,tution. What results is a unique immersion experi- and the University of Franz traveled to Bergamo for the first time, meetingence in which students, who are put into groups,Bergamo hold a Mizzou Tigers flag on the strike up conversations,Bergamo campus.equally fascinated withMembers ofBY STEPHEN SCHMIDT the others backgrounds the Summer 2022Like many others in Bergamo, Italy, the night of MayMilans presence in the Union of European Foot- whilenavigating congregation fromlanguage barriers.the Bergamo summer23, 2007, began with a dinner party.ball Associations (UEFA) Champions League final, program gather. Thetaking place in Athens, Greece. Thisisthemagic Students from the Mizzou students haveThere was a bus to take several students from theofthisstory.ItalianUniversity of Missouri red T-shirts, with theTrulaske College of Business into the citys center,The teamlocated a little more than an hour fromstudents meet Amer- and the Universitystudents from Bergamoin the middle of the fourth installment of the studyBergamowent on to win the most prestigious clubican students. Americanof Bergamo beforein white, and facultyabroad partnership between the University ofsoccer tournament that year for its seventh title ofa dinner in Italy.and staff in green. its kind. Not being able to move forward due to theprofessorsmeetthe Missouri and the University of Bergamo, whichItalian professors and recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. foot traffic and revelry, the bus eventually backedcolleagues, CavalloneFaculty membersBergamo is a rather quiet citya place not fullout of the city center. Butler sat in the bus, amazed atsaid.before the start ofof tourists but of picturesque backdrops carvedthe sight, before venturing into the crowd with other the 2022 program instudents to join the watch party for the title game. Rolling along Bergamo (from left):by winding, cobblestone streets in the countrysAs evidenced by the Joel Poor, Trulaske;Lombardy region. As a small-town, Missouri kid, soccer wasnt even in20th anniversary, there Mauro Cavallone,On this night, the city wanted to roar in unison withmy vocabulary. No one has a soccer ball in my town,is no sign of the partner-Bergamo; Laurathe rest of Italy as the Trulaske students learned onesaid Butler, who is a native of Bethany, Missouri. with the University of Bergamos dean, who put himship between the universities stopping any time Vigano, Bergamo;Ken Shaw, Trulaske. of the fundamental truths of the Bergamo expe- Butler first arrived in Bergamo in the summer ofin contact with Cavallone. soon.rience:Truepassion2006 as a sophomore, having only been on a planeAs luck would have it, the University of BergamoI hope that this will become a long-life program needs no translation. one other time for a domestic flight. For threehad just taken over a new building that once housedfor our university, and that we can work to increase From a cultural stand- consecutive summers, though, he would serve asa bank on a main artery in the city. The universityother possibilities, said Cavallone, who mentioned point, the country wasa student manager for the study abroad experiencewanted to expand its programming, making the startthere were plans in the works to send his students to absolutely on fire, saidat Trulaske. of its partnership with Trulaske a timely endeavor. Columbia in a more traditional exchange program.Andy Butler, BS Acc, MOver the last two decades, there have been manyFranz taught a project management class to theAccording to Franz, the recipe for the programs Acc 09, who was a first- stories like Butlers. These are the result of the rare,Bergamo students in the summer of 2002, beforelongevity has been quite simple: Put in equal parts year student managerdynamic blend of equal part Trulaske studentsthe first group of Mizzou students arrived with himpassion and respect. And mix.on the trip. and Bergamo studentsjust as the programsthe following summer.co-founder, Chuck Franz, hoped. It was the passion that both Mauro and I had for The bus was met by aSince 2002, the Bergamo program has alwaysthe students, Franz said, and the genuine respect sea of Italian flags andFranz, who retired from Trulaske as an associateremained unique due to its formattingan equalthat weand our colleagues and studentshave flares. Those who heldprofessor in 2015, attended the anniversary event ingroup of students from Mizzou and Bergamohad for each other about the contributions that we them were particularlyBergamo on May 30. Also in attendance was Maurochoose two classes, taught in English, that spanscan bring to the program.emboldenedbyA.C.Cavallone, the marketing professor from Bergamofour weeks.12 MANAGEMENT MATTERSMANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT 2023 ANNUAL REPORT 13'