Cataldo Named Vice Chair of Global Executive Education Group

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA (July 27, 2009) – The board of directors of the International University Consortium for Executive Education (UNICON) has elected Patrick Cataldo, associate dean for executive education at Penn State's Smeal College of Business, to serve as vice chair for the 2009-2010 year. The following year, Cataldo will serve as chair of UNICON, a worldwide organization of major international business schools that offer quality post-degree executive education programs. 

Cataldo assumed his new position at the organization's annual meeting, held this year on July 15 at the University of California, Los Angeles. Carlos Arruda, professor and director of International Relations at Fundação Dom Cabral in Brazil, was elected chair for the current year.

Arruda and Cataldo will lead a board with representation from ten other schools from around the world—Cranfield School of Management, the Insper Institute of Education and Research, the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), London Business School, MIT, New York University, Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, the University of Michigan, and the University of Texas.

Cataldo joined the UNICON board of directors in 2007, serving as co-chair of its Membership Committee which is responsible for recruitment, evaluation, and recommendation of additional schools for membership to the board. He has been a member of the organization since 2004, and has been a regular presenter at the organization's meetings.

Cataldo is also a member of the Society for Human Resource Management and the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD). He is a past ASTD board member and currently serves on ASTD's BEST Awards Committee which annually recognizes global organizations that demonstrate enterprise-wide success through employee learning and development.

At Smeal, Cataldo is responsible for the design, development, and delivery of executive education programs supporting the needs of international clients through Penn State Executive Programs, the executive education division of Smeal. He is member of the executive education faculty and is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on corporate learning and development.

About UNICON                                                                                                                           
The International University Consortium for Executive Education is an organization of about 90 leading business schools with a commitment to executive education and leadership development.

Founded in 1972 as an association of executive education program directors, UNICON has evolved from an informal common-interest group to an incorporated nonprofit organization committed to the advancement of the field of university-sponsored executive education.

About Penn State Executive Programs
Penn State Executive Programs, the executive education division of Penn State's Smeal College of Business, has been serving the development needs of the world's business leaders since 1954, providing both open-enrollment and custom programs. Nearly 42,000 executives from 43 different nations have participated in programs on topics ranging from strategic leadership to supply chain management.

Penn State Executive Programs was recently ranked as the No. 1 provider in the world of customized executive education programs by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research arm of The Economist magazine publisher. The EIU also awarded Penn State Executive Programs its Award of Excellence for open-enrollment programs, making Smeal the only U.S. provider to be rated excellent in both categories.

For more on all the offerings of Penn State Executive Programs, visit www.smeal.psu.edu/psep.