Cultural Background Can Be a Plus for Global Companies
Although her home and office are in Attleboro, Mass., Isil Yuceler ’01 M.B.A. works with 230 customers in 30 different countries. As regional manager for the Middle East and Central Asia for Diamond Diagnostics, a manufacturer of clinical laboratory instruments and supplies, her territory includes the Middle East, Turkey, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh.

Yuceler negotiates with clients, locates distributors in each country and helps them distribute their products. Yuceler also searches for new product lines and promotes the company’s wares at trade shows.

Yuceler moved up quickly at Diamond Diagnostics. With a bachelor’s in business administration from Istanbul University, she earned her M.B.A. in international trade at JWU. Shortly after graduation she landed an interview with Diamond Diagnostics. Impressed with Yuceler’s talents and Turkish roots, the company created a position especially for her as international sales associate. She began work there in 2002 and after covering Turkey as her first region, she was promoted to her current title after only three months.

Working for a global company has been a great move for Yuceler. “In global companies you have more opportunities to learn and develop,” she says. “Diamond Diagnostics grew very rapidly and I was able to move from a sales associate to a regional manager position. It was a great learning experience for me, and I still continue to learn every day.”

Canole Receives First Dean's Chair Award
In April, Mary Canole ’99 Ed.D. became the first person honored with Johnson & Wales University’s Dean’s Chair Award from the School of Education, given to an individual in the community who has made significant contributions to JWU’s growth, development or quality of the school’s programs.

“Dr. Canole has contributed in all these areas,” said Denise Magistris, ’03 Ed.D., dean of the School of Education.

Canole, a graduate of JWU’s first doctoral class, is the director of the Office of Progressive Support and Intervention for the Rhode Island Department of Education. While superintendent of schools for Newport, R.I., she realized there was a need for professional support and guidance for those in the post. “You don’t really know what the job of superintendent is until you’re actually sitting in the seat. It’s essential to have some kind of ongoing support,” said Canole.

Over time, she solicited seed money as a grant from The Wallace Foundation, brought JWU on as a partner, and in 2006 launched Advanced Leadership Development for Superintendents (ALDS) with 10 superintendents participating. In 2007 there were 22. “Clearly there was a need for superintendents to come together,” says Canole.

With JWU providing space and help from instructors, the School of Education also benefits from the program, she says. The information brought to the table by superintendents plays a part in shaping the curriculum for the school’s Educational Leadership program.

Canole’s contributions are exemplary, DeMagistris notes. She assisted with strategic planning, made presentations in doctoral classes and built a collaborative relationship between educators and the Rhode Island Department of Education that fosters professional development for new school superintendents.