Ernest Ansah travelled a long distance from Ghana-West Africa to attend his first meeting of the Advisory Board of UNC Pembroke School of Business.

Ansah is the president and founder of Data Link University College in Tema-Ghana. He hopes to build on already established ties with UNCP, and the School of Business hopes to build on its growing international focus. He was contacted to serve on the School of Business Advisory Board by Dr. Cliff Mensah upon the request of Dr. Ramin Maysami, dean of UNCP’s School of Business.

 “I am pleased to join the Advisory Board,” Ansah said. “This is a beautiful campus, and I would love to have all of you to come take a look at what we are doing.”

With an enrollment of more than 2,000, Ansah has big plans for his institution, which currently offers courses in business and information technology. Data Link has acquired  a seven mile square land which will host its new facilities such as department of medicine, engineering and many more.

“Our mission is to develop the whole person with exemplary moral values for service at the highest levels of excellence,” he said. “Our commitment is to reach out to those who would otherwise not have a chance to have a university education.”

“And our goal is to become an Outstanding Teaching, Learning and Research University and a recognized center for excellence,” Ansah said.

The school’s new campus, located outside of Tema (Doryumu on the Tema – Akosombo Highway), is under construction It is on a tract of good land, Ansah said.

“This site will be our new main campus,” he said. “It is our hope that Data Link will become a self-sufficient campus with a hospital, crops and animal husbandry.”

Because it is West Africa’s most stable nation politically, Ghana’s economy is booming. Ansah is also optimistic about his new partnership with UNCP.

UNCP economist Dr. Cliff Mensah is from Ghana and has spent time at Data Link as a volunteer, lecturing students and guiding faculty in research. Ansah noted that Dr. Mensah teaches without payment.

“We are a non-profit organization, and one of our challenges is financing,” he said. “But I am happy to reciprocate the kind gesture of his voluntary service by agreeing to serve on the Advisory Board and hope to make some valuable input toward the course of the School.”

“I have taught for the past four summers at Data Link, and two of my colleagues, Dr. Jack Spillan and Dr. Richard Kang, have joined me,” Dr. Mensah said. “I have also collected several shipping containers of books at UNCP for shipment to Ghana.”

Dr. Mensah pointed out that the mission of the School of Business leans heavily on the goal of internationalizing its curriculum to train students with a global business perspective.

“Mr. Ansah is the first international representative on our advisory board,” Dr. Mensah said. “I believe a relationship with an African university will benefit our students and our mission.”

Data Link and UNCP are looking at options to facilitate academic interactions via Internet and interactive video lectures. Dr. Ramin Maysami is pleased to have Mr. Ansah on the Advisory Board.

“We are very happy Mr. Ansah accepted our invitation to join our board,” Dr. Maysami said. “It is a long journey from Ghana, but we hope it will be a mutually beneficial one.”

Learn more information about Data Link University College: http://datalinkuniversity.com. For more information about UNCP’s School of Business, please contact them at 910.521.6214 or email business@uncp.edu.