Andrew Bergstein graduated from Penn State with his undergraduate degree and he received his M.A. from Maryland in Marketing Communications. After 20 years of working for NBC, Fannie Mae and Altec Lansing, he came to Penn State and has been an instructor here for 15 years. He teaches Global Marketing and Sports Marketing. He is an avid ethnographer/social psychologist and in his free time between classes he enjoys observing trends among the Smeal student body. Over the past two years he has noticed an increasing trend toward diversity at Smeal which he observed by watching people enter our doors. From the east doors he sees more and more diverse groups of students (many from Asia) while from, as he calls it, “the Smeal Runway” entrance the junior and senior classes are less ethnically and culturally diverse. “If you want to see the latest technology and fashion however,” said Bergstein, “go look at the Smeal Runway.” Bergstein is also fascinated with the recent global trend toward business with the “Now” world (Asia Pacific). He believes that this is the new frontier of modern business. It is the world in which Smeal students will likely be involved. He has also noticed an increase in communication between students and their families through what he calls the “electronic umbilical cord.” He calls it this because as technology improves so rapidly students are now, more than ever connecting with their parents as he has observed throughout the business building. He finds it particularly interesting that to today’s technology is a “birth right.” Professor Bergstein’s hobbies include watching college football primarily Penn State, followed by Notre Dame. He considers himself an inside and outside the line fan, as he cares for both the
business and the playing of these games. Bergstein is a fan of the Washington Nationals, Baltimore Orioles and the Pittsburgh Pirates. One of his pugs is named Pirate and the other one Philly who was named in honor of Pat’s Cheesesteaks! He is also a fan of the Cinderella team during March Madness every year. Bergstein deeply enjoys travel and his favorite place is Honduras where he visited the “Mysterious Ruins” which are said to belong to a people who simply vanished in 1000 A.D. He also pursues the study of American history from pre-colonial America to about 1910 as the Old and New world began to intertwine. In his early 30’s, Bergstein was an amateur biker in the Tour de France. He toured the entire course about an hour ahead of the professionals. While in France he also climbed Alp de Huez a 10,930 foot high mountain in the Alps with a 13 degree slope and 23 switchbacks (Tussey Mountains is about 1030 feet high). He claims he would not be able to do that anymore. Some of his students who went into professional sports were Paul Posluszny with Buffalo, Sean Lee with Dallas and Robbie Gould. Paul and Sean are both linebackers and they were both accomplished Smeal Finance graduates. Robbie was a management major and he has scored more points than anyone in history of Chicago bears as their kicker. Professor Bergstein is very interested in the “DNA and bloodlines” of Penn State Nittany Nation which spans from Smeal business students and alumni to Penn State Football and THON.