BLACK SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Business Briefs Spring 2019
DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE Another exciting academic year has drawn to a close for the Black School of Business. Our International Business major was recently named the No. DR. GREG FILBECK 1 program of its Director, Black School kind by study.com, of Business and we were once again named to U.S. News and World Report’s annual list of Best Part-time MBA programs. Starting this fall, we will expand from one to twelve Bloomberg terminals for our students’ use—and one of these terminals will be located in Trippe Hall, the home of our Global Boarders program. In this issue of Business Briefs are a number of recent highlights from across the school. This year, with strong support from our Business Advisory Board, we launched two new strategic initiatives to obtain funding for professional designations and our annual spring business trip. More than 110 faculty and staff members and friends of the Black School of Business attended our annual spring banquet. We have much to celebrate as our programs continue to grow. We thank each of you for your continued support.
MIS students’ redesign of city’s website lauded When City of Erie Mayor Joe Schember took office, he put improving communication with constituents at the top of his administration’s to-do list. Schember wanted to create multi-platform ways of communicating with Erie residents, largely through electronic media, without spending too much of the city’s finances. His team knew just where to turn for free technology services—Partnership Erie, a Black School of Business outreach center. Dr. Kathleen Noce, teaching professor of management information systems at Behrend and director of Partnership Erie, was happy to help, putting several Management Information Systems majors on the case. The students worked closely with Schember’s office and ultimately came up with a refreshingly simple design for the home page—a color photograph of the sun setting over Presque Isle Bay, as well as a search bar and the question “How Can We Help?” From there, visitors can navigate to a comprehensive and fully redesigned website. The site has received many accolades for its design and ease of use. The MIS students did the work for free through the Black School of Business’ Innovation Through Collaboration (ITC) initiative. Andy Steinmetz, then the city’s digital media coordinator, said the website work might have cost as much as $50,000 if the city had hired an outside firm.
Marketing Club now a chapter of AMA Penn State Behrend’s Marketing Club is now a collegiate chapter of the American Marketing Association, the premier professional association for marketers globally. “Our students will be joining a network of 30,000 marketing professionals including professional chapters in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Toronto, and New York City,” said Dr. Richard Vann, assistant professor of marketing and co-adviser for the club. Club members will now have access to AMA job boards, career resources, training, certifications, competitions, and an annual international student conference. “The AMA brand should help our student members stand out, and it adds another dimension to their preparation as marketing professionals,” Vann said.
STUDENTS VISIT THE BIG APPLE Each spring, the Black School of Business organizes a trip to a major metropolitan city where students engage with industry professionals, interact with alumni, and experience the professional environments in which they will soon be working. This year, forty students, including thirteen World Campus students, and five faculty members went to the heart of business and finance in the United States—New York City. They toured the Bloomberg facility and dined with alumni, then broke into smaller groups to visit businesses relevant to their majors. Accounting students, for example, visited Ernst & Young while finance majors visited Bank of America. “The trip allows students to explore career options, to get a taste of what it would be like to live in a big city, and to network with alumni and business leaders,” said Eric Robbins, lecturer in finance and team leader of the trip. Past trip destinations have included Boston, Chicago, and Charlotte, North Carolina. “The impact these experiences have on students is profound, and it lasts a lifetime,” Robbins said.
Professional affiliation adds up for Finance students
I
n a number of financial fields, having the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association (CAIA) designation is beneficial. In some areas, it is essential. But earning CAIA credentials involves an investment of both time and money. It requires hundreds of hours of study, and the cost for the level 1 exam alone is $1,000-$1,500, depending on when a candidate registers to take it.
But four Finance majors will pay nothing thanks to the Black School of Business’ participation in the CAIA’s affiliation program, which makes scholarships available to test candidates to defray the costs of enrollment in the CAIA program and level 1 exam. Behrend is one of fewer than 100 universities worldwide that have earned affiliate status in the program.
THE STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED SCHOLARSHIPS are, from left, Michael Dalton, Elena Khudovekova, and Alejandro Sintas, who study in the Behrend Finance Program through World Campus, and Andrew Morgan, who is a student in the residential program.
Leadership program champions female students
T
he C3W Leadership Program is a co-curricular certificate that female students at Penn State Behrend can complete over one to two years to prepare for leadership in academic, business, and social settings. Students focus on developing these skills through three pillars (the 3Cs): capability, confidence, and connections. The program is spearheaded by Ann Scott ’82, ’99 M.B.A., community outreach manager at Erie Insurance, vice chair of the college’s Council of Fellows, and one of the Black School’s Executives in Residence. She worked with faculty members Dr. Diane Parente, Breene professor of management, and Dr. Mary Beth Pinto, professor of marketing, to plan the event and give students the opportunity to make important connections. In November, students enrolled in the C3W Leadership Program, learned about networking, then practiced it with some of the Erie area’s most prominent women business and government leaders, including Erie County Executive Kathy Dahlkemper, pictured at right with a student participant.
CARTOONIST SHARES BUSINESS, LIFE ADVICE It isn’t often you get the chance to belly laugh in a business class, but it was nearly impossible not to when Dave Blazek, the creator of Loose Parts, a nationally syndicated comic strip, stopped by MKTG 441 Sustainability in Marketing Strategy. Blazek talked about his unconventional career path and how he wanted to be a journalist, but ended up as a newspaper advertising sales representative and, eventually, a cartoonist. The Erie native and Penn State graduate, who began his studies at Behrend, encouraged students to approach each task and job with a positive attitude, strive for creativity, and dare to say yes to opportunities when they arrive, even if they seem scary or impossible at the time.
DAVE BLAZEK talks with Behrend students in MKTG 441 Sustainability in Marketing Strategy this spring.
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College Black School of Business 281 Burke Center 5101 Jordan Road Erie, PA 16563-1400
Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Erie, PA Permit No. 282
MASTER OF PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING NOW A HYBRID PROGRAM
T
his fall, it will be more convenient than ever to earn a Master of Professional Accounting (M.P.Acc.) degree from Penn State Behrend when the program is restructured to feature 75 percent online instruction and 25 percent in-class learning, which can be completed at Penn State Behrend or at the Regional Learning Alliance in Cranberry Township, outside of Pittsburgh. It’s a smart investment as all fifty states now require 150 credit hours of education for Certified Public Accountant licensure.
Increasingly complex business methods, growing sophistication in auditing approaches, new tax laws, and a demand for highly technical services require an expanded knowledge base to become an effective accounting professional. The one-year degree fulfills the educational requirements needed for CPA licensure in Pennsylvania within graduatelevel education.
For more information, visit behrend.psu.edu/mpacc.
FINANCE MAJORS WIN REGIONAL RESEARCH CHALLENGE A student investment team from Penn State World Campus, consisting of three Behrend Finance majors, won the regional competition of the CFA Institute Research Challenge in Pittsburgh. The team—Mike Dalton of Oregon, Kris Mbah of Michigan, and Kristen Rance of Georgia—was coached by Dr. Brian Boscaljon, associate professor of finance. The team advanced to the Americas Regional Competition in New York City in April.
FROM LEFT, Dr. Brian Boscaljon, Mike Dalton, Kris Mbah, and Kristen Rance.
Business Briefs is published by the Black School of Business at Penn State Behrend, 281 Burke Center. Phone: 814-898-6107. Web: behrend.psu.edu/business. This publication is available in alternative media on request. Penn State is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, and is committed to providing employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. U. Ed. EBO 19-260