Dean’s Welcome I
t is hard to believe this is my ninth year as Dean of the MSU College of Business, and every year gets better. This past year, we expanded our footprint into downtown Starkville with
the opening of the Idea Shop, featured on p. 80. Program Coordinator Michael Lane and his staff of E-Center students have hosted several events for the community, including the iCreate Camp and the “TalladeGourd 500” charity fundraiser! The Turner Wingo Maker Studio in the Idea Shop has drawn the attention of students, staff and the community. As we brand the College under the umbrella of entrepreneurship and innovation, our Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach (E-Center) continues to grow. Several companies have received funding from the Bulldog Angel Network. Student business Rocketing Media swept the 2019 SEC Student Pitch Competition – winning first place in every category! In the area of outreach, we hosted the Golden Triangle Lemonade Day, with more than 200 lemonade stand entries by local children.
We have seen a great deal of transformation in the College with the renovations of the Marketing, Quantitative Analysis and Business Law Suite and the newly named Dora Rose Herring Accountancy Suite in the Adkerson School of Accountancy. We are also moving the MBA lounge and giving the new space a complete makeover. As for enrollment, last fall we surpassed 3,000 for the first time in history, and the fall 2019 semester started with more than 3,200 students! Last year we also launched the MBA Venture Pathway (MVP) program – featured on p. 30 – for high achieving nonbusiness majors. To end my letter, it is only appropriate to acknowledge the passing this year of three giants in the history of the MSU College of Business – Dean William C. Flewellen, Mr. William Simmons and Dean Harvey Lewis. Dean Flewellen served as the Dean of the College of Business from 1961 to 1968, when he moved to the University of Georgia, remaining there until retirement in 1989. While I never had the pleasure of knowing Dean Flewellen, his legacy lives on through both an endowed professorship and an endowed room in his honor. Mr. Bill Simmons was one of the powerhouses of the MSU Adkerson School of Accountancy. He was a beloved professor to thousands throughout his career. He was a gentle soul who loved MSU and his profession. In 2015, we honored him as one of 19 notable faculty members in the 100-year history of the College. His passing marks the end of an era – the end of the legendary accounting faculty who taught so many of you. Dean Harvey Lewis had a storied career at MSU as Department Head, Dean, Executive Director of the Foundation, Vice President for Administration and Development and Interim President. He retired in 1997 as Dean of our College, which grew significantly under his direction. A prince among men, he, too, loved MSU and regularly kept in touch. The Dr. Harvey S. Lewis Mezzanine on the second floor of McCool Hall’s Atrium was dedicated in his honor through the support of more than 30 contributors whose lives he impacted. We hope you enjoy the 2019 edition of Dividends. We’d love to see you when you’re in town, and please let us know about your achievements. You just might be featured in the next edition! Thank you for your continued support of the College of Business, and Hail State!
Sharon L. Oswald, Dean
