rmu school of business winter 2015 colonial ledger
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Find out the latest news and information for the Robert Morris University School of Business.TRANSCRIPT
>Music ManDr. Brian O’ Roark, universityprofessor of economics at RobertMorris, is the recipient of the2014 Undergraduate TeachingInnovation Award from theMiddle Atlantic Association of
Colleges of BusinessAdministration (MAACBA). He earned theaward for his project “Incorporating Musicinto the Economics Classroom” in which heuses popular music, from a variety of eras,in the curriculum for his introductoryeconomics courses. The project started witha survey of the best economics songs of thepast 50 years – including Madonna’s“Material Girl” and Macklemore and RyanLewis’s “Thrift Shop” – but has taken on alife of its own, as colleagues, friends, andfamily provide O’Roark a steady stream ofideas for songs he can consider using in histeaching. According to O’Roark, this uniquemethod “helps students to see the economicconcepts we are learning in class are notentirely esoteric. They are things that doshow up in everyday life. It gives them adifferent perspective on economics and adifferent perspective on music.”
O’Roark, who has been on the faculty atRMU for 10 years, earned a bachelor’sdegree in economics and history fromGrove City College, and his master’sdegree and Ph.D. in economics fromGeorge Mason University. Dean JohnBeehler admires Dr. O’Roark’s teachingmethods, “his efforts to reach the currentgeneration of students studying economicsthrough music are both innovative andexemplary, setting an excellent example forfaculty nationwide. In the age where activelearning and engagement are critical to thesuccess of students preparing for theirfuture careers, Brian has taken the lead andmotivated others to find innovative ways toimpact student learning across alldisciplines.”
>Message from the DeanThere is always excitement in the air at the beginning of fall semester;
however, this year’s sense of excitement was special.The Fall 2014 semester started off with greatenthusiasm among our students, faculty and staffwho attended our traditional events: NewStudent Convocation, Faculty Convocation, andthe New Business Student Reception in MasseyGardens. This year we also had a special eventto celebrate our reaffirmation of AACSB
accreditation in the newly-renovated Ferry Room inMassey Hall. Faculty, staff and members of our Board of
Visitors attended this celebration.
With many accomplishments over the past year, the School of Businessopened the new academic year with the theme “Continue the Momentum.”Simply put, we need to be committed to continuous improvement,academic excellence and student success – the practices and principles thatresulted in our reaffirmation of AACSB accreditation. We also need toimplement the key initiatives in our new strategic plan. This includesimproving our current curricula and expanding into niche areas that willenhance opportunities for our students.
Two key task forces have been established to accomplish this agenda. Thefirst is the MBA Task Force which is charged with benchmarking ourprogram against our competitors, peer and aspirant schools and the top-ranked programs in the country and developing an enhanced programalong key dimensions. The second is the Entrepreneurship and InnovationTask Force which is charged with developing a strategy for integratingentrepreneurship and innovation into our curricula to give our students theskills necessary to be successful in today’s dynamic global marketplace. Wetraditionally have been known for preparing our students to be successful inthe corporate world. Now, we need to go one step further by preparingstudents to identify opportunities in the marketplace for new products andservices and to develop and grow new innovative businesses. In this rapidlychanging and uncertain world, every business school graduate must havean innovative mindset and an entrepreneurial skillset to be successful. Inturn, our region, state and nation will be more successful economically overtime with our graduates equipped with these skills.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our alumni andconstituents for your support. With higher education facing challengingtimes, it is only possible for our University and its School of Business tocontinue its positive trajectory with your investment of time, talent andtreasure. We look forward to engaging you in our future success. We wishyou a very happy and prosperous New Year.
J O H N M . B E E H L E R , P H . D . , C PAD E A N , S C H O O L O F B U S I N E S S
S C H O O L O F B U S I N E S S N E W S L E T T E R > W I N T E R 2 0 1 5
The Colonial Ledger
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> Sport Management Conferenceand Sport Management Hall ofFame InductionThe Department of Sport Management hosted the 11th RMU Sport ManagementStudent Career Conference on Friday, October 17, 2014. Over 150 studentsrepresenting 18 universities and 75 industry professionals attended this year'sevent. Additionally, for the 5th year in a row, a pre-conference workshop by Steve Swetoha (SM BSBA 89) CEO/Tulsa Shock and Murray Cohn (SM BSBA 1988)VP of Team Ticket Sales-NBA, featured an alumni mentoring session for RMUjuniors and seniors, as well as an NBA-sponsored networking session.
The School of Business and Sport Management Department inducted the RooneyFamily and Pittsburgh Steelers into the RMU Sport Management Hall of Fame asthe inaugural organization to be inducted for their historical contributions for bestbusiness practices and corporate responsibility in the NFL and SouthwesternPennsylvania. The 2014 RMU Sport Management Hall of Fame class also includedPatrice Matamoros, Sport Management Advisory Board member and CEO/Dick’sSporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, Bryan Ross, (SM MS 2003) Senior Director of Ticket Sales/New Orleans Pelicans & Saints, and Russ Yurk (SM MBA 1994)Director of Events/USA Football, all of whom were inducted into the Hall of Fame at a post conference reception.
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>> MICHAEL DOHERTY, ‘79 RMU SPORT MANAGEMENT ADVISOR BOARD CHAIR, KEVIN COLBERT, GENERAL MANAGER OF THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS, MRS. PATRICIA ROONEY,RMU TRUSTEE EMERITUS, RMU PRESIDENT GREGORY DELL’OMO AND DAVID SYNOWKA, DEPARTMENT HEAD OF SPORT MANAGEMENT.
> Save the Date: Business WeekThe School of Business is happy to announce that Business Week 2015 will be heldFebruary 23rd through the 26th, 2015 on the RMU main campus. For the second yearof this popular event, programming will be centered on the theme, “It’s a Jungle OutThere.” There will be a wide range of session topics including careers in accounting,careers in finance, entrepreneurship, opportunities in marketing, sport managementand obtaining and thriving in your first job. Be on the lookout for details on speakersand a full schedule of events!
> SBUS Fast Facts• Dr. Steve Clinton, Department Head ofMarketing, is serving in an additional rolethis academic year as Interim AssociateDean for Student Success. We thank Dr.Clinton for being willing to serve in bothimportant roles.
• Seven School of Business studentsreceived a total of $24,500 in awards fromthe 2014 Scholarship Award Program of thePennsylvania Institute of Certified PublicAccountants (PICPA) in 2014.
The seven scholarship winners are Garret Rieber .................. $5,000 Jessica Gromo .................. $4,000 Ethan Keller .................... $4,000 Kyle Neff .......................... $4,000 Damean Barfield ............ $3,000 Katie Abramovich .......... $3,000 Sonia Castano Garcia .... $1,500
Congratulations to these Department of Accounting and Taxation students.
• Dr. Marcel Minutolo, Department Headof Management, has received recognitionby Money Magazine as a “Money Hero” for“outstanding service on the financial well-being of others,” specifically for his workwith veterans.
• Dr. Artemisia Apostolopoulou has beennamed the recipient of the RMUDistinguished Teaching Award for 2013 –2014 for being judged as a truly superiorteacher by faculty peers and students.
• Dr. Manmohan (M.D.) Chaubey of theDepartment of Management has beenappointed as Director of GraduatePrograms for the School of Business. M.D.will oversee all three School of Businessgraduate programs: MBA, Master ofScience in Taxation, and Master of Sciencein Human Resource Management.
• On December 3, 2014 School of Businessfaculty members, Dr. Daria Crawley andProfessor Carol MacPhail participated inthe KPMG Fall 2014 Audit CommitteeRoundtable at Heinz Field. This seminarfocused on the topic of TappingInternational Markets – Key GovernanceChallenges and Dr. Crawley delivered thekeynote address.
> Student Profile:Patrick Beam
Meet Patrick Beam.Patrick is a junior in theSchool of Business, witha concentration inManagement. Duringhis time at RMU, Patrick
has been involved with theSociety for Advancement of Management(SAM) student organization, currentlyserving as president, and as a member ofthe inaugural 2014 Business Week PlanningCommittee. Patrick joined SAM hisfreshman year, and was instrumental inreenergizing the club into the active studentorganization it is today. He continues hisinvolvement with the Business WeekPlanning Committee, which is hard at work planning programming for 2015.
Though he currently lives on campus,Patrick, a Canonsburg, Pennsylvanianative, enjoys traveling, cars,snowboarding, and playing the guitar. He has been playing guitar for seven yearsand has even given lessons! On top of hisrigorous schedule, he also holds a part-timejob as a Manager at GameStop in RobinsonTown Center. His employment withGameStop has given him the opportunityto start applying what he has learned fromhis experiences at RMU in the workplace.In addition, he is currently consideringseveral internship opportunities to add tohis professional portfolio. Among manythings, Patrick notes that his favorite part ofRMU is its homey feel that has allowed himto flourish as a student and a professional.
According to Patrick, his School of Businessleadership experience “has given me theopportunity to strengthen my managementand leadership skills and taught me that asa manager and a leader, you must haveheart and a passion for what you do. Youmust care about the people you work with,and the people you lead. If a leader hasthese attitudes in the forefront of theirmind, all success and rewards of theorganization will follow through.” Clearly,the School of Business is helping to shapePatrick Beam into a knowledgeable andcompassionate leader.
>> CHAUBEY >> SETH >> VEMALA
>ManagementManmohan (MD) Chaubey, Ph.D.
Education:Doctoral: University of IowaGraduate:Indian Institute of Management, CalcuttaUndergraduate: Indian Institute of Technology, KanpurTeaching Specialty:Human Resource ManagementHometown:North Huntingdon, PAFavorite sports team:
Iowa HawkeyesHobbies:Music, BooksBest piece of advice to students:“What you do matters.”
Tapan Seth, Ph.D.
Education:Doctoral: Wayne State UniversityGraduate: University of Tulsa Undergraduate: Brigham Young UniversityTeaching Specialty:Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship Hometown:New Delhi, IndiaFavorite Sports Team: San Antonio Spurs Hobbies: Cooking, reading, and travelling Best piece of advice to students: “Take this period to understand yourself. This is probably the only time when you willhave absolute freedom to experiment, learnfrom your mistakes, and understand thepossibilities that lie in front of you.”
Prasad Vemala, Ph.D.
Education:Doctoral: Texas A&M International UniversityGraduate: University of South Dakota (MBA, and Master’s in Computer Science)Undergraduate: Bangalore University, IndiaTeaching Specialty:International Business/FinanceHometown:Anantapur, IndiaFavorite sports team: Pittsburgh SteelersHobbies: Racquetball, badminton, swimmingBest piece of advice to students:“Build yourself, and embrace globalization.”
>> PENG
>MarketingJim Shock, DBA
Education:Doctoral: Grenoble École de Management in Grenoble, FranceGraduate: Robert Morris UniversityUndergraduate: Point Park UniversityTeaching Specialty:MarketingHometown: Pittsburgh (I consider Basel,Switzerland my second hometown)Favorite sports team: FC Basel, ManchesterUnited, New Zealand All Blacks, Pirates,Steelers, PenguinsHobbies: Skiing, hiking, fitness, Americanhistory, world historyBest piece of advice to students: “The numberone skill employers want from new graduates isthe ability to think critically. Don't consider yourstudies only to be ‘check the box.’ Think!.andthink differently. It will make a difference.”
>Accounting and TaxationJacob Peng, Ph.D.
Education:Doctoral: Texas Tech UniversityGraduate: University of Illinois, Urbana-ChampaignUndergraduate: Tunghai University in Tiachung, TaiwanTeaching Specialty:AccountingHometown: Taipei, TaiwanFavorite sports team:At the moment, Detroit Tigers....but gradually shifting to Pittsburgh PiratesHobbies: Riding his bike, kayaking Best piece of advice to students:
“It's in the syllabus!! (just kidding..... here is the more serious one: Don't stop exploring!)”
>New SBUS Faculty
Accounting and Taxation:
Ms. Carol MacPhail
Economics and Legal Studies
Dr. Patrick Litzinger
Finance
Dr. Riza Emekter
Management
Dr. Marcel Minutolo
Marketing
Dr. Steve Clinton
Sport Management
Dr. Dave Synowka
Contact Us: Students: Need information about a certain Business major or class? Alumni: Looking to share your expertise with the School of Business?
>Accounting and Taxation• The Department of Accounting & Taxationwas proud to enter four RMU teams among afield of twenty-two teams for the 2014 JointPICPA/Institute of Internal Auditors Collegeand University Case Contest. The goal of thecompetition is to further the understanding ofinternal controls through real-life scenarios. Two of our four teams were selected as finalists, with RMU's Team Gold beingrecognized with a second place award following live presentations.
> Economics andLegal Studies• Dr. Zhou Yang, Assistant Professor ofEconomics, received major funding for some of her research through a David C. LincolnFellowship in Land Value Taxation for 2014-2015. It is the third consecutive fellowshipfor Dr. Yang from the Lincoln Institute of LandPolicy.
• The Department of Economics and LegalStudies Network Sessions took place onTuesday, September 30th, 2014 and Wednesday,January 28th, 2015 in the Charles L. SewallCenter. Students discussed departmentcurriculum, professions and careers.
> Finance• Five School of Business Finance students,Brunella Camponez, Yosef Goldberg, MadelineMarco-Scanlon, Brandon Orr and MalloryZombek are competing in a Chartered FinancialAnalyst Institute (CFA) challenge with all areacolleges around western Pennsylvania. In thiscompetition, each team will write a researchreport about a company. The winning team goesto Atlanta to participate in a national and globalcompetition.
• The School of Business FinancialManagement Association (FMA) sponsored a very successful event during with Fall 2014 semester with guest speaker Daniel Suhoski from AYCO. More than 30 students participated.
>Management• The department obtained renewed fundingfrom the United Way of Allegheny County and Just Harvest to continue participation withthe Money in your Pocket Coalition in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. Visit pghfreetaxes.org to learn more about theprogram and how to volunteer or have yourtaxes prepared.
• Faculty members Nell Hartley, Ph.D. andMichael Yahr announced their retirements for the end of the academic year. Between Dr. Hartley and Mr. Yahr, the School of Business will lose a combined sixty-two years of service.While we wish them the best in retirement, their contributions to the School of Business will be sorely missed.
>Marketing• Dr. Steve Clinton, Department Head andInterim Associate Dean, has been named the2014 American Marketing AssociationPittsburgh Educator of the Year. Dr. Clinton waspresented with this honor at the chapter’sMarketer of the Year event held December 4th.
• Dr. Alan Smith has rejoined the Departmentof Marketing. He most recently has been in the Department of Management. Dr. Smithhas been awarded a sabbatical for the Spring 2015 semester, so we look forward to his full integration back into the department in Fall 2015.
> Sport Management• The Sport Management Association has been off to an active start this academic year.Activities have included a presentation by BuffyFilippell, President, TeamWork Online LLC as well as a field trip to Heinz Field. Plans areunderway for the 3rd Annual Colonial Chaos.
• Dr. John Clark’s class hosted the 9th SusanHofacre 5k walk/run on November 1, 2014. Theproceeds from the race go to build a scholarshipendowment in memory of Dr. Hofacre, a SMDepartment Head and Athletic Director whopassed away from cancer in 2005.
>News Updates from SBUS Departments
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> Connect with SBUSYour support is crucial to the high quality, professionally focused education that the School of Business provides to our students. To show your commitment, please make your gift today at rmu.edu/sbusgift.