Duke University is planning a major global initiative that will expand its reach around the world. Here are excerpts from its press release:

Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business will announce on Monday an innovative expansion plan that will establish a network of campuses around the world to conduct research and deliver programs.

This network will embed and connect Duke’s research and teaching activities in key economic and cultural centers of the world: New Delhi, India; St. Petersburg, Russia; Dubai, UAE; London, UK; and Shanghai, China, as well as on Duke’s campus in Durham.

Partnerships with individuals, municipalities and organizations will facilitate the simultaneous launch of the business school’s campuses in each of these five regions. In addition to establishing the business school in each of these regions, the expansion plan includes current or future participation from other parts of Duke University, including the Nicholas School of the Environment, the Duke Global Health Institute and the Sanford Institute for Public Policy.

Fuqua Dean Blair Sheppard noted the significant shift in business education represented by the school’s global initiative.

“With the simultaneous launch of our new international locations, Fuqua will be the first truly global business school, shaped and driven by the fundamental issues of our time,” Sheppard said. “The depth of our activities in each location ensures we will become truly embedded in each region. By engaging with these regions through education and research, we will be able to examine the world’s opportunities and problems, explore interdependencies between regions, create solutions to address world issues, and prepare practitioners to be change agents and informed leaders.”

Fuqua’s new global plans call for a significant presence in each location rather than the casual affiliations that define the international programs of most U.S. business schools, Sheppard said. Each of Fuqua’s regional campuses will support all Duke MBA programs, including the Executive MBA programs. Each also will include a Duke Corporate Education site or partnership, open enrollment executive education, at least two research centers and Fuqua faculty, as well as service learning activities tied to local needs. Duke’s commitment to civic engagement will extend to these new initiatives.  

The leading activity in Fuqua’s global expansion will be The Duke MBA – Cross Continent program, which begins in August 2009. This program will be held in each of the five regions before closing at the Duke campus in Durham, N.C. More details can be found here.

The school’s first regional partnership, with the Graduate School of Management in St. Petersburg, was to be announced at the launch event. Fuqua will announce its plans for the India location in October.  

For further information about the global initiative, visit Fuqua’s web site.