CSU Channel Islands new Director of Business Special Sessions for the Martin V. Smith School of Business & Economics and Extended University believes growing up in the Central American nation of Belize helped shape the approach she takes to her career.
“It is a small developing country that has unlimited potential,” said Philipa Moguel, Ed.D. “It’s a hidden gem that is ethnically diverse and culturally rich. I believe it has been the precursor to my doing a lot with less. You learn to make a huge impact with the few resources you have.”
Moguel sees great potential in the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Business Online Completion and Business Certificate programs, which she now oversees.
“Through partnerships and community engagement, my goal is to expand and diversify our reach and visibility as one of the leading business schools in the region,” Moguel said.
Moguel entered the CSU system when she became the first in her family to attend college at CSU Northridge (CSUN) in 2002 as an international student.There, she earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Business with a Marketing option and later a master’s degree in Educational Administration while serving as the Assistant Director of MBA and Graduate Programs at CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics.
Moguel later joined the college of Business and Public Policy at CSU Dominguez Hills as the admissions analyst while completing her doctoral degree in Educational Leadership.
Dean of the MVS School of Business & Economics, Susan Andrzejewski, Ph.D., believes the business programs will thrive with someone as creative and experienced as Moguel.
“Philipa brings over 15 years of higher education experience to her role, which includes significant experience in building out structured, inclusive, student-centered programming designed to ensure the student educational experience is transformational,” Andrzejewski said.
Moguel plans to expand the MBA program by building on the success of the Martin V. Smith School’s experiential learning programs, while also enhancing the equity, visibility, inclusion and diversity across programs,
“I want to increase cultural and ethnic diversity in our student makeup,” Moguel said. “In partnering with student organizations, national organizations, industry experts and community leaders we not only broaden our reach, we also build our community.”
As a former international student herself, Moguel plans to diversify the business school by recruiting and supporting more international students.
“It’s one thing to be the first in your family to attend college,” she said. “It’s another thing to be an international first-generation student.”
Traveling from her native China to attend CSUN as an MBA student in 2019, Redy Hong Li doesn’t know how she would have made it without Moguel’s guidance. Like Moguel, Li was also the first in her family to attend college.
“I didn’t know much about the program, I had never entered the country before and I had all kinds of questions,” Li said. “About classes, about my visa, everything. I spent two months asking her questions. She was so patient and helpful.”
Li described Moguel as a “gold mine” of knowledge who was ready to help students with issues ranging from academics to finances to challenges in a student’s personal life.
Now that Li has graduated and is working as a sales manager in Camarillo, she stays in touch with Moguel, and has every confidence Moguel will help CSUCI’s business students flourish.
“She likes to spend time with students, she will listen to you,” Li said. “She will support you. She will treat you not just as a student, but as a friend.”