Esri and the University of Redlands are proud to announce the induction of nine new scholarship recipients to the Esri Fellows Program. Established in 1999, this program provides selected Esri employees with full tuition scholarships to attend evening and weekend courses at the University of Redlands towards completion of either an undergraduate or graduate level degree.
This year’s recipients are from Software Product Development, Technical Support, Professional Services, Customer Service, Marketing, and Human Resources. One is completing a bachelor’s degree and the others will be obtaining master’s degrees.
“While working in Customer Service, I have learned a great deal about Esri’s business operations and as a result I was given a career that I truly enjoy. Completing a bachelor’s degree in business will give me the knowledge and tools I need to advance my career at Esri,” says Beth, one of this year’s recipients. “Being awarded this fellowship allows me to complete my goal faster and puts me on a clear career path that will keep me focused and driven to do my best.”
Some employees who didn’t major in GIS for their undergraduate degree use the scholarship to further their knowledge of GIS. Shreyas, a software developer, is an example. “I feel privileged to be a recipient of the Esri fellowship to pursue a master’s in GIS. Coming from a computer science background, this will fill in some of the gaps in my understanding of GIS and allow me to look at the software we build from an end user’s perspective. This will make me a more effective engineer, aligning user requirements and software development.”
Michael, an employee in Professional Services, sees the scholarship as a win not only for himself, but for Esri and its customers as well. “I am honored to be an Esri Fellow and look forward to further expanding the breadth of my background through an MBA program,” he says. “As technology evolves and becomes more transparent through innovations such as the cloud, the importance of understanding key business needs to create optimal solutions is critical. It’s exciting as I have the opportunity of advancing my career, and at the same time providing even stronger value to our customers and Esri.”
Esri strongly supports employees’ ongoing personal development including formal education. In addition to the scholarships, it offers tuition reimbursement, participation in Esri Training and Education course offerings, and off-site training classes designed to improve technical, sales, interpersonal, and management skills.
Congratulations to this year’s Esri Fellows.