Joan Conway's classroom:
Where business and ESL intersect
 Joan Conway, second person from the right in the front row,
and former colleague Rebecca Jansen (Joan's right),
with their students at Daegu Catholic University in South Korea
She caught the teaching bug as an undergraduate at Michigan State University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education. After graduating in the early 1970s, she began working as a teacher, and then changed careers a few years later to work in sales for the Kellogg Corporation headquartered in Battle Creek, Mich. When she realized that wasn't a long-term fit, she returned to college to earn a master's degree in linguistics at Cornell University.
 In 1987, Conway was hired by the University of California at Santa Barbara to develop a business English program for international students. She drew on her work experience in the Kellogg Corporation's sales force and her experience teaching in the Harvard Summer School, where she prepared international students to enter graduate programs at the Harvard Business School. Her course simulated American MBA classes to help students adjust to the rigors of a competitive academic environment.
"I enjoy teaching language and critical thinking and anything that has to do with business,” said Conway, a native of Battle Creek, Mich. "I love to bring in a case from the Harvard Business School and help my students use their analytical skills to dissect it. It encourages them to call on their high-level English skills, while focusing on a real-life situation." Conway was hired by WMU in fall 2005 to teach ESL classes and welcomed the opportunity to return to Michigan, which she sorely missed."California never felt like home—I grew up in Battle Creek—that is where I feel at home," she said. Recently, Conway has taught business English classes for Kellogg’s, her former employer. Kellogg’s asked WMU to help them provide instruction to their international employees who had requested high-level business English instruction. Conway designed the classes to include business writing, presentation skills, corporate etiquette and cross-cultural language issues. She also continues her work with CELCIS students preparing to enter the University.
"The students in the CELCIS program come from many nations and speak many languages," she said. "There is always something new to learn from my students."  Joan Conway and CELCIS colleague Dael Kurti with students from
Daegu Catholic University at the Kalamazoo Nature Center Joel Boyd, CELCIS interim director, said Conway has been especially helpful to students planning to study business at WMU in the Haworth College of Business. "What stands out about Joan’s work is her professionalism," Boyd said. "This professionalism is supported by her kind smile and determined attitude. Her background in teaching English for business majors has been of particular benefit, and we offer short-term programs with students from Japan and France where her expertise comes in very handy."
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