From the Dean’s Desk Spring 2012
Dr. S. Ann Becker, Dean of the Nathan M. Bisk College of Business
Welcome to the second edition of the Nathan M. Bisk College of Business Smart Business@Florida Tech e-newsletter. In this edition, we highlight recent activities that both reflect our vision of educating future entrepreneurial leaders and promote our core values of innovation, diversity, ethics, and leadership. For more highlights, visit our College of Business blog or “like” us on our College of Business facebook page.
ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP
Visiting Entrepreneurship Lecture Series
Our Visiting Entrepreneurship Program has been a great success in bringing accomplished entrepreneurs on campus to share their experiences and expertise. Each month, a guest speaker engages students in a classroom setting to explore entrepreneurship as a career path; as well as, gives a talk that is open to the public, faculty, staff, and students.
Recent guest speakers:
Robert Keimer, co-founder of Airgonomix, was the guest speaker for November. His talk, A Shoe Shine Kit & a Piggy Bank: Guideposts for Entrepreneurship, focused on past experience in a family business; and more recently, experience in business startup and technology innovation.
Travis Proctor, founder and President of Artemis IT and Florida Tech alumna, was the guest speaker for January. His talk, The Journey from My Garage to the Corner Office, shared experiences as a student entrepreneur on the career path to success.
Upcoming guest speakers:
Upcoming Visiting Entrepreneurs include Mr. Rick McNeight, President of Modus Operandi, “The Entrepreneur’s Road” on Feb. 27th; and Mr. Richard Scott, President, Carolina Business Mentors, “Tricks and Tips for Entrepreneurial Bootstrapping and Career Success,” on March 21st . (Contact Sharon Carnohan, scarnoha@fit.edu, for more information.)
Student Entrepreneurship Activities
Be Entrepreneurial Business Plan Challenge. Co-sponsored by Junior Achievement of the Space Coast and the Florida Tech Women’s Business Center, young entrepreneurs from local high schools on December 6th competed for cash awards provided by the Balda Family Foundation. Business faculty and students, business leaders, and accomplished entrepreneurs participated in the event.
Youth Entrepreneurship Summer Camp. The Florida Tech Women’s Business Center in partnership with Junior Achievement of the Space Coast will be hosting two summer camps (June 18 – 22 and June 25 – 29). Accomplished entrepreneurs and business leaders participate in support of a broad range of activities.
New ventures: Florida Tech Entrepreneurs Club and Student Business Incubator. Dr. Sam Doss, marketing professor and entrepreneur, is the advisor to the Florida Tech Entrepreneurs Club and the Student Business Incubator program. Both provide for students to be innovative and creative in exploring business opportunities.
ETHICS AND LEADERSHIP
Ethics Breakfasts
The Center for Ethics and Leadership (CEL) held its Fall 2011 Ethics Breakfast on Tuesday, October 18th. The topic, Politics and Ethics, was the focal point of featured speaker Mr. Stuart Burns, Chief of Staff for U.S. Representative Bill Posey.
The CEL held its Spring 2012 Ethics Breakfast on Friday, February 10th. The topic, Leadership and Ethics in the Healthcare Industry, was the focal point of featured speaker Mr. Steven P. Johnson, President and CEO of Healthfirst.
High School Ethics Competition
The 16th Annual High School Ethics Competition will be held on March 9, 2012. Fourteen high school teams will join the competition. Florida Tech provides education scholarship awards to winning team members. Business leaders and faculty serve as judges in the selection of the winning team. This year’s case is entitled, Google Internet Privacy.
Ethics Conference
The 12th Annual Florida Tech and Harris Conference on Ethics and Leadership will be held at the Hilton Rialto, Melbourne Beach on March 22nd. The conference is open to the public. This year’s theme is Ethics in Cyberspace: Is There Character in Technology?”. The winning team from the High School Ethics Competition will be presenting their case.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
- The Spain Study Abroad program is off to a great start. Held May 7 to June 15, 2012, the program promotes a culturally-rich, international business learning experience. Dr. Mike Slotkin, Associate Professor of Economics is the lead instructor.
- The College of Business has attained candidacy status for professional accreditation by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE).
- Dr. Andrew Cudmore gave a talk on, “Exploring Student Retention at Florida Tech: A Research Project” as part of our “Brown Bag Lunch” lunch talk series. Mr. Tim Muth, February’s speaker, will present, “A Truly International Business Project”.
- The Department of Extended Studies has two student finalists in this year’s federal government Presidential Management Fellows Program; Rosa Cannaverde from the Virtual Site and Cynthia Flynn from the National Capital Region Site in Quantico, Virginia.
- The Florida Tech Women’s Business Center held its fourth annual Success Celebration on December 8, 2011. This special event brought together clients, students, business leaders, and the community to commemorate the year’s accomplishments.
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The College of Business now offers an online MBA specialization in International Business.
- The College of Business has its online undergraduate and graduate business programs included in the U.S. News & World Report. Florida Tech was the only one of four schools on the undergraduate honor roll and only one of fourteen on the graduate honor roll.
The College of Business is embracing social media to stay connected to students, alumni, friends, families, and our community. We hope you will stay join us online through the College of Business facebook page and Business Blog to stay abreast of what is happening in the Nathan M. Bisk College of Business. We welcome your comments, feedback, and participation. Thank you for your continued support.
