ITI Celebrates the Graduation of the Class of 2012

DENVER, CO, June 12, 2012 – The Intermodal Transportation Institute (ITI) at the University of Denver recently graduated its ninth cohort of transportation management professionals from its Master of Science in Intermodal Transportation Management degree program. Graduating students and their families attended the recent graduation reception and hooding ceremony, where they heard comments from the program’s Dean, James R. Davis, graduating students, and ITI Board Members Craig R. Lentzsch and Richard (Dick) R. Coleman.

This 2012 graduating cohort is ITI’s largest at 22. Eighteen graduates are from freight companies, three from shipping companies, and one from a metropolitan planning organization (MPO) – ITI’s first student from an MPO. With Cohort 9, 157 students have graduated from this degree program. The ITI MS Program has a graduation rate of 98 percent and a retention rate of 98 percent.

Dean Davis welcomed the families who traveled long distances to attend the graduation and hooding ceremony. He commented on the adjustments that family members have to make when partners or parents undertake a graduate program and recognized that earning a degree is often a “team” effort.

Several students spoke and thanked the faculty for their assistance throughout their coursework and their families for their support throughout their graduate studies. They commented on the impact that the coursework had on broadening their understanding of the transportation industry. They also emphasized the value of new friendships with individuals from different transportation sectors and/or modes that were solidified during their six quarters of study and travel.

Mr. Coleman, President of ContainerPort Group, Inc., and ITI Board Member, also addressed the students. He congratulated the cohort on their achievement, stating that the success of the group was a result of intensity of effort, frequent interchange of ideas, and the quality of the content of their work.

Mr. Lentzsch, ITI Faculty Member and ITI Board Member, remarked on the benefits of this cohort’s diversity in company types and business skills. He added that the ITI Board members and ITI faculty worked hard to design a program that would attract such a diverse group of students and emphasized that the ITI Executive Masters program is clearly headed in the right direction. Cohort 10 is currently continuing its coursework and Cohort 11 will begin this fall.

About ITI

The Intermodal Transportation Institute at the University of Denver offers an Executive Masters Program that awards a Master of Science in Intermodal Transportation Management from the University of Denver. This graduate degree program prepares transportation industry managers for the increasingly complex, global business environment where knowledge of finance, quantitative processes, supply chain, transportation law, and public policy issues as well as freight, passenger, and intermodal transportation operational strategies are critical management tools for success. For more information on the ITI Executive Masters Program call: 303-871-4702 or visit: www.du.edu/transportation.