Alumnus Presented with Achievement Award

DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce recently released a report on the economic value of 5,500 business

DR. GREG FILBECK programs at more

than 1,700 colleges in the United States.* I am thrilled to report that the Black School of Business was ranked in the top 10 percent of all business schools! Not only is our school ranked highest among all other undergraduate business programs in the Penn State system, we outpaced all other business schools in the region. Our graduate ranking tied with that of University Park and, again, placed us ahead of regional competitors. We credit the success of this ranking to many factors, including the quality of our academics, as evidenced by the expertise of our faculty and the preparedness of our students. Penn State Behrend’s Open Lab philosophy—what we also call “Learning by Doing” in the Black School of Business—gives our students theoryto-practice opportunities to apply their learning in meaningful ways, working with a wide array of corporate and strategic partners. As Gene Natali, president of Troutwood in Pittsburgh, has said, Black School of Business students are “workforce ready” upon graduation, prepared to hit the ground running and make an immediate contribution. We hope you enjoy this edition of Business News, which offers a variety of articles reflecting student, faculty, and alumni success. A big thank-you for all your support as we engage in continuous improvement, also with a focus on student-centric success.

In Brief

MIS/MBA ALUMNUS PRESENTED WITH BEHREND ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Steven Bugajski, a 1994 Management Information Systems and 2004 MBA graduate, was recently presented with the Behrend Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award.

The award is presented annually to a graduate of Behrend who has made significant contributions to and achievements in their profession, in their community, and at Behrend. Recipients are those who have demonstrated professional leadership, been active in community affairs, and contributed to the betterment of society, social values, and/or justice.

Bugajski is the vice president and chief information officer for U.S. Steel, where he leads the company’s global IT operation, including digital strategy and cybersecurity.

He serves as an executive in residence for the Black School of Business, has mentored dozens of Behrend students, and together with other U.S. Steel IT professionals, has developed programs for students to learn about business, technology, and cybersecurity in the corporate world. He also sits on the executive committee of the Black School’s advisory board and the MIS program advisory board.

Steven Bugajski, center, at the awards ceremony with his wife, Yvette, and son, Adam, a current Behrend student majoring in Project and Supply Chain Management and Management Information Systems.

ON THE COVER

Karla (Murray) Mazza ’07, ’08 MBA, is the co-owner of four Fyzical Therapy and Balance Centers in Corry and Erie. She and her business partner were named the Fyzical franchisees of the year in 2022. Read more on page 6.

BLACK SCHOOL A SMART INVESTMENT

A report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce has ranked the programs of the Black School of Business among the top 10 percent in the country for value, or financial return. The report ranks more than 1,700 colleges and universities nationwide based on graduates’ annual net earnings two years after graduation and their level of student debt. At all levels—associate, bachelor’s, and master’s—the net earnings of graduates of Behrend’s business programs were among the best.

DID YOU KNOW?

The Black School of Business is a leading partner in Behrend’s Virtual/Augmented Reality (VAR) Lab, directed by Dr. Chris Shelton, assistant professor of clinical psychology. The VAR Lab has three spaces— the VAR Lab research and development unit; the VAR Studio, an extended reality (XR) maker space; and VAR Edu, where students and faculty can interact with VR/AR technologies.

“The Black School of Business is our biggest partner, and the school’s investments in the VAR Lab have helped us to purchase equipment and expand capabilities,” Shelton said. “The school is forward-thinking and can see the future of these technologies in business sectors.”

Learn more at behrend.psu.edu/VARlab

Faculty and Staff News

NEW FACULTY AND STAFF

The School of Business welcomed four new faculty members: Dr. Amit Agarwal, assistant professor of marketing; Dr. Ben Lee, assistant professor of marketing; Kevin Pratt, lecturer in marketing; and Dr. Hafez Shurrab, assistant professor of project and supply chain management. In addition, Lea Saunders has joined the school staff; she serves as academic programs coordinator.

PROMOTIONS

Ten School of Business faculty members have been promoted: Dr. William Johnson to professor of management; Dr. Jeffrey Coy to associate professor of finance; Linda Hajec to associate teaching professor of accounting; Dr. Christopher Harben to associate teaching professor of management; Dr. Byung-Cheol (BC) Kim to associate professor of project and supply chain management; Dr. Babajide Osatuyi to associate professor of management information systems; Dr. Xianghui (Richard) Peng to associate professor of project and supply chain management; Eric Robbins to associate teaching professor of finance; Phil Stuczynski to assistant teaching professor of finance; Dr. Hyunsoon (Sean) Yim, to associate professor of marketing.

OTHER NEWS

Dr. Ray Venkataraman, professor of management and department chair of the Marketing and Project and Supply Chain Management programs, recently celebrated 25 years with Penn State.

In Brief

FILBECK GIVEN LIFETIME JA ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Dr. Greg Filbeck, director of the Black School of Business, was recently honored with a lifetime achievement award from Junior Achievement (JA) of Western Pennsylvania. The award is given just once every five years. JA is a global organization dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy. The Black School of Business has partnered with JA of Western Pennsylvania for many years, offering professional expertise, assisting with materials, and hosting events.

CELEBRATING THE START OF THE NEW ACADEMIC YEAR

The Black School of Business held its annual welcome-back event—“Back 2 Business”— during the first week of the 2022-23 academic year. Each business club had a table to share information, and faculty members were on hand to talk with new and returning students. There were games, fun, and food, including Penn State’s famous Berkey Creamery ice cream!

HAN CHOSEN FOR EARLYCAREER PROFESSORSHIP

Dr. Eunjoo (EJ) Han, assistant professor of marketing in the Black School of Business, is the second Behrend faculty member to receive a new early career professorship designed to support the teaching and research of a faculty member in the first decade of their career. The endowment for the Dr. Chester “Chet” L. Wolford Early Career Professorship was made possible through a gift from Ed Auslander, retired president and chief executive officer of LORD DR. EUNJOO (EJ) HAN Corporation, and his wife, Elaine, to honor the late Wolford, a former professor of English at Behrend. Auslander, a 1985 graduate of the Penn State College of Engineering, earned an MBA at Behrend in 1991.

Auslander said that, throughout his career, which included oversight of business operations in twenty-six countries, with annual revenue in excess of $1 billion, he relied on skills he learned in a business writing course taught by Wolford.

Han teaches courses in marketing, marketing research, and buyer behavior and applied research. Her research focuses on sustainable consumption, charitable giving, and consumer goals and motivation.

The first recipient of the professorship was Dr. Joongseo Kim, an assistant professor of management, whose term ran from 2020 to 2023. Han will hold the professorship from 2023 to 2026.

NEWS FROM THE CENTER FOR FINANCIAL LITERACY

Dr. Jeffrey Coy, associate professor of finance, has been named academic director of the Black School of Business Center for Financial Literacy, which provides research-based financial education to high school students, secondary school educators, and adults. The Center partners with CFA Society Pittsburgh, a world leader in financial literacy outreach, and also with the nonprofit organization Next Gen Personal Finance, which has a mission of ensuring DR. JEFFREY COY all students take one semester of personal finance courses before graduating high school. Pre- and post-assessment tools developed and implemented by the Center are currently being piloted through Next Gen with more than 400 teachers and 10,000-plus students from 41 states participating. Next Gen is the largest provider of financial literacy content in the United States, reaching more than 58,000 teachers and 1,000,000 students nationwide.

BLACK SCHOOL SUPPORTS 5K RUN/WALK

Inaugural event drew nearly 200 participants

Penn State Behrend’s rich history of influential women began with Mary Behrend, who in 1948 donated her Glenhill home to the University in memory of her husband, Ernst, founder of Hammermill Paper Company. The first Behrend student was a woman—Dorothy Holmstrom, an engineering major, who was at the front of the line to enroll in the initial class of 146 students. Recognizing that legacy and the growing importance of engaging women in leadership roles, Penn State Behrend formed the Women’s Engagement Council (WEC) in 2020. In August, the organization held its first public event, the Run for Women 5K run/ walk, drawing nearly 200 participants who completed the 3.1-miile course in Behrend’s Knowledge Park. Among the highlights: Berkey Creamery ice cream at the finish line, courtesy of the Athletics Department, and Nittany Lion- shaped awards that were designed and 3-D printed by students in the college’s James R. Meehl Innovation Commons. The Black School of Business provided funds to buy much of the race equipment that can now be used year to year. WEC’s future plans include a mentoring program, an awards program/luncheon, and a woman-focused speaker series designed to engage women at Penn State Behrend and in the greater Erie community. The board recently began accepting applications for free membership in the council. Learn more at behrend.psu.edu/wec. Follow WEC at facebook.com/PSBwomenscouncil and instagram.com/behrendwomenscouncil.

Franchise Proves To Be Perfect Partnership

Former student-athlete finds formula for business success in physical therapy centers

When she started at Penn State Behrend, Karla (Murray) Mazza planned to major in kinesiology, offered at University Park. An avid volleyball player, she joined the varsity team at Behrend, and after a year, she knew she wanted to find a major she could complete at the college.

“I just loved the team and Behrend, so I had to think about my skillset and where I could apply it. My mom suggested marketing,” said Mazza, who graduated with a Marketing degree in 2007 and an MBA in 2008. “It aligned with what I wanted, which was to have a lot of options in the business world and to one day be my own boss.”

That day came sooner than she imagined when she and her husband, Dave, ran into a college friend, Christopher Bailey, a physical therapist who was considering buying a physical therapy franchise, Fyzical, in Corry in 2017.

At the time, Mazza was working for Patterson-Erie Corporation, which owns and operates Burger King franchises in the Erie region, so she had some experience with the franchise model and told Bailey she would look at it and give him her thoughts.

After doing the research, Mazza was impressed. “I liked the business opportunity that Fyzical offered to someone without a medical degree, and their approach to providing more holistic health care,” she said.

Bailey suggested they join forces. He would handle the clinical side of things and Mazza would manage the business side.

“Dave and I believed in Chris’ vision and Fyzical, and bought into the business,” Mazza said.

It turned out to be a great partnership. In 2021, Bailey and Mazza were named the Fyzical Franchisees of the Year, and the two recently opened their fourth location.

GROWING FYZICAL

After taking ownership of the Corry facility, Bailey and Mazza noticed they had a lot of patients who were driving from Erie for treatment of vertigo and balance issues, a specialty of the Fyzical franchises.

“Fyzical has expertly trained clinicians for patients with balance problems,” Mazza said. “People assume they have to leave the region in order to get help, but it can be found right here.”

Knowing they had existing clients in Erie made expansion an obvious next step. They opened their second location, in West Erie, in 2019.

“That was eye-opening,” Mazza said. “Splitting our time between multiple clinics highlighted the need to have consistency, or it would’ve been overwhelming, operationally.”

The solution, Mazza said, was to build a solid team. “Having the right staff is huge,” she said. “Mood matters. We want a positive workplace with employees who share in our vision and enjoy their jobs. If we take care of them, they will take care of our patients.”

Each facility, including the two that Mazza and Bailey added in 2022 in Erie’s Harborcreek and Summit townships—has a clinical director, but Mazza is a frequent presence.

“Face time is vital,” she said. “I need to be accessible to our employees, and the more time I spend in the centers, the better I understand our needs and challenges.”

FROM PLAYER TO “COACH”

Recalling her experience playing volleyball at Behrend, Mazza likens herself to a coach rather than a player now. “The coach is the one doing the advance work, strategy, research, and measuring results. It’s my job to make sure we’re going in the right direction.”

She has help, not only from her business partner and employees, but from being part of the Fyzical franchise. Among the benefits Mazza lists the ability for rapid growth, turnkey products, strong business support, and excellent training programs.

“That said, we are still a mom-and-pop operation,” she said. “We’re still locally owned and operated. I go to the same grocery stores and restaurants as our patients, and we live in this community. It’s the best of both worlds.”

Karla (Murray) Mazza ’07, ’08 MBA

PARALLEL LINES

Though Mazza doesn’t provide treatment to patients (Bailey and the licensed therapists fulfill that role), she enjoys being in the physical therapy environment and helping people.

“My Behrend volleyball coach, Phil Pisano, used to tell us that it was important to find a career that aligned with our purpose in life,” Mazza said. “I think I have done that.”

Are there more grand openings in her Fyzical future?

“I think four is the right number,” she said. “I’d like to help other franchisees grow now. It wasn’t long ago that I was a single proprietor trying to figure everything out. Helping someone who is just getting started would be rewarding for me.”