Brandeis Alumni, Family and Friends
Alumnus Named to New Academic Chair Honoring Brandeis IBS Founding Dean
November 5, 2018
Call him the architect of Brandeis International Business School (IBS).
As founding dean, Peter Petri is the central figure in the history of Brandeis IBS, which was established in 1994 as the Graduate School of International Economics and Finance.
In the decades to follow, it was Petri’s entrepreneurial spirit and visionary leadership that helped Brandeis IBS develop into what it is today: a global hub of learning with a well-earned reputation for academic excellence and innovation.
On Oct. 30, Brandeis University President Ron Liebowitz recognized Petri’s efforts by announcing the establishment of the Peter A. Petri Chair in Business and Society.
“It was through Peter’s leadership that we now have a diverse, highly ranked, and globally recognized business school,” said Liebowitz. “It is home to students from across the globe who study alongside each other, visit the world through the generosity of the Hassenfeld Fellow Overseas Immersion Program, and go on to serve in companies, nonprofits and governments in over 100 countries.”
Brandeis IBS Professor of International Business Ben Gomes-Casseres ’76 has been named the inaugural holder of the chair. Gomes-Casseres is an expert on alliance strategy and management. He is the director of both the Asper Center for Global Entrepreneurship and the business school’s MBA program.
Both Petri and Gomes-Casseres were present for Liebowitz’s announcement, which came during a Brandeis IBS Board of Overseers dinner. The chair was created with support from John and Adam Usdan and the Lemberg family.