Catalina Tejero and María José Ferrari, Vice Deans of IE University Arts & Humanities Division

Manuel Muñiz, Provost of IE University, has announced the appointments of Mª José Ferrari and Catalina Tejero as new Vice Deans at IE University Arts & Humanities Division, the cross-cutting platform that reinforces the humanistic component in the curriculum of the academic institution’s programs and enriches the student experience.

Catalina Tejero, appointed Vice Dean for Management and Development of IE University Arts & Humanities Division, was associate executive director of this strategic area of the university since its creation in 2019. She also held management positions in International Business Development and Corporate Relations departments within the institution. She previously worked as a corporate lawyer at leading Spanish law firm Garrigues. In her new position, she will lead the strategy of the Division and the creation of alliances with leading institutions in the art world, as well as developing extracurricular activities for students. The Division has also organized more than 300 extracurricular events since 2019 including museum visits and scenic arts shows at various cultural institutions in Madrid and Segovia, as well as seminars and panels. In addition, the Division has made several strategic external partnerships, including agreements with Instituto Cervantes, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza and Guggenheim Museum Bilbao.

Tejero holds a law degree and a diploma in international relations from ICADE (Universidad Pontificia de Comillas) and an International MBA from IE Business School. She is also an adjunct professor at IE University, specializing in art and business. She is currently pursuing her PhD in Business Administration at IE University, with research on corporate artistic patronage.

As Vice Dean for Academic Affairs, Maria Jose Ferrari will lead the academic area of the division, developing new courses and programs that enrich students’ personal and professional growth through the arts and humanities. These courses span disciplines such as art, philosophy, history and cultural studies, with a special focus on the intersection of the humanities and technology, as well as the development of public humanities projects. Ferrari was until now associate academic director of the Division. Under her leadership, the Division has strengthened its presence in IE University’s programs, with a significant growth in the number of classes and professors. Since the launch of the Division in 2019, over 9,000 students across Bachelor and Master´s programs have taken an academic course in the arts and humanities.

Ferrari has developed her research work in the United States, France, Russia, Chile and Spain. She holds a degree in Law from Madrid’s Complutense University and a degree in Philology from Spain’s distance learning university, the UNED. She also holds a PhD in Philosophy and Hispanic Culture from Columbia University. Her most recent studies deal with applied linguistics and she has been a professor at IE University for more than 10 years.

ABOUT IE UNIVERSITY

IE University, through its Arts & Humanities Division, works to enrich the learning experience and develop the critical thinking of its undergraduate and graduate students from more than 140 countries. Among their activities, they organize seminars, conferences, master classes and cultural events that allow students to deepen their knowledge in areas such as history, philosophy, art or music, among others, and apply that knowledge to management and problem solving from a humanistic perspective. The Division will launch its first own program this academic year.