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Welcome From Dean Ed Bashaw
Greetings from the School of Business at Emporia State. We have had a great Spring semester, and these past few months have been filled with many student, faculty, and alumni accomplishments—some of which we’ll share here in this newsletter. Our BizHornets are excited for their summer break and will be well rested upon their return on August 20. For those graduating in May, we wish them all the best and good luck in their careers. We know you are ready!
We are looking forward to the Fall semester, and we hope you join us along the way at one of our many events, like an AACSB Accreditation celebration, Homecoming, or the upcoming Preston Family Student Complex ribbon cutting. As always, please keep us updated on your professional achievements. And if you’re ever near campus, please stop by for a visit.
Go Hornets!
Ed Bashaw, Ph.D., Dean and Jones Distinguished Professor
ebashaw@emporia.edu
School of Business News
AACSB Reaccreditation
The School of Business has received an extension of its business accreditation by AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. AACSB accreditation is known, worldwide, as the longest standing, most recognized form of specialized/professional accreditation an institution and its business programs can earn. Dr. Ed Bashaw explains the importance of this reaccreditation, “Our mission is to provide access to innovative business preparation for limitless opportunities in the region and beyond. This mission is the guide for everything we do here, from hiring faculty to what programs we offer. Extending our AACSB Accreditation reaffirms our commitment to the quality of education our students expect and deserve.” Click here to read more.
Waldeck Family 2018 Executive Leadership Summit
The first annual Executive Leadership Summit was held Friday, April 20, and featured three “Women Who Mean Business” in the KC area (and ESU Alumni): Denise Kruse ’82, Teresa Martin ’81, and Linda Sinnett ’79 & ’14. These executives answered a series of questions about their careers and what it took to get where they are now. Their stories were uplifting and inspiring. Thank you to the following sponsors who made the event possible: the Waldeck Family, Design Resources, Inc., 2S, Inc., Hopkins, and Teresa Martin Lockton Companies. Click here to view the Flickr album.
Business Students Win Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge
This year marked the 4th year of the Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge. The EEC allows Emporia State University and Flint Hill Technical College students to compete in an intensive venture idea competition. On February 5, 36 teams pitched their idea for a chance to win $100 at the Elevator Challenge. Rich Avery, owner of Pizza Ranch, was our judge for this event. Winners of the Challenge were Best Pitch: Carissa McAfee; Best Idea: Austin Lingenfelter and Mason Esch; Judges Choice: Bailey Reinhardt.
Forty-one teams competed in the official Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge. Following the business proposal round, 18 semifinalist teams were selected to advance. The Emporia Entrepreneur Challenge concluded on March 13 at the Community Showcase. First place and $2,500 was awarded to Carissa McAfee, ESU junior management major from Valley Falls for “Expression Through Art,” a hybrid nonprofit that envisions a world where arts opportunities are offered for every special needs individual. Second place and $1,500 was awarded to DeWayne Sanford, ESU junior business administration major from Lawton, OK, for his business idea, “Puppy Pawlish,” a self-service dog wash. Clinton Henderson, ESU senior business administration major, minoring in geography, from Junction City, won third place and $500 for “iCare,” a venture idea that will supply children within the foster care system with book bags filled with their needs. Click here to read the full story
Another component of the challenge included Share Your Story Night hosted by the Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce on April 10. The top three teams delivered their pitches again to a group of local business professionals for feedback to improve their concepts.
Carissa McAfeee and DeWayne Sanford, the top two finishers, traveled to Manhattan on April 24 for the Kansas Entrepreneur Challenge. They both received Honorable Mention and $1,000.
Hult Prize
The Hult Prize is the world’s largest student movement for social good and welcomes college and university students from all over the world to compete and show their talents. This year, the Hult Prize challenged students to create innovative businesses to harness the power of energy to transform the lives of 10 million people using one of six principle dimensions: connectivity, education, agriculture, water, mobility, and health.
Amir Ammar, Hult Prize ESU Campus Director, an exchange student from Tunisia, had a goal of sending Emporia State University students to the Hult Prize competition, something that no other Kansas university had even done. After applying to be a campus director, Amir received notification that ESU had been accepted as a competing school. Dr. Bashaw is grateful for Amir’s perseverance. “We appreciate Amir’s grit when it came to this competition. His vision was to have ESU accepted as a competing school in the Hult Prize, and he made that happen. Because of his hard work, seven Hornets had once-in-a-lifetime, real-life experiences.”
The first place team competed in Boston, MA, March 9–10. The participants were team leader Ifeanyi “Martin” Okonkwo, MBA, from Nigeria; Farhan Sadique, senior, marketing/management, information systems minor, from India; and Carissa McAfee, junior, management, from Valley Falls, KS. At the Boston Regionals, hosted at the Hult International Business School, the team pitched their idea of “Sun Time,” a backpack with a solar-powered battery large enough to power small appliances.
The second place team competed in Mexico City March 16–17. The participants were team leader Saandhyarag (Sandy) Sasidhar, junior, information systems/marketing, from India; Warrick Rodgers, senior, computer science, information systems minor, from Zimbabwe; Emilia Flores, junior, chemistry, from Ecuador; and Mohammad Daouk, senior, computer science, information systems minor, from Lebanon. The team’s project was “Project Carthage,” which uses SolarReserve's patented solar thermal energy storage technology in the uninhabited Saharan desert to generate power, with the goal of Africa becoming completely independent of fossil fuels in 20 years.
Undergraduate & Graduate Research Days at the Capitol
Three BizHornets were accepted to present their research at the Capital Undergraduate and Graduate Research Summits at the State Capitol in Topeka. 1) Grayce McAllister, junior, business administration, from Americus, KS, “Current Higher Education Funding Models and Possible Enhanced Solution.” Mentor: Dr. Steven Lovett; Research was conducted to find the current models of funding that are used for higher education in the United States and throughout several countries in the world. 2) Franziska Willenbuecher, senior, business administration, from Limburgerhof, Germany, “Could Financial Trouble be Avoided by Cooking at Home? An Examination of the Relationship Between Fast Food Spending and Payday Loans.” Mentor: Dr. Marc Fusaro. Her research studied the question of whether the volume of fast food purchases is related to a higher incidence of payday loans, and hence whether a cycle of debt could be avoided by cooking at home. 3) Tarek Mhiri, master of business administration, from Tunisia, presented research on the Emporia State Economic Index. Pictured are Franziska Willenbuecher (left) and Grayce McAllister.
What's New in the School of Business
Dr. Bashaw was featured in the Emporia Chamber's Member Minute. In the video, he highlights what’s new at the school, including the progress on our Preston Family Student Complex.
Student News
 Many honors were handed out at the Spring 2018 Beta Gamma Sigma Initiation and Honors Banquet held on April 19. The new Beta Gamma Sigma members are Mohammed Alsalman, Elizabeth Ballinger, Rachel Hays, Jacob Hubbard, Mckenzi Huettenmueller, Kirk Jackson, Hyeonji Kim, Kalyn Meseke, and Saba Tesfaye. The BGS Honorary Inductee was Greg Kossover (BSB 1985-Accounting). He has been the Executive VP and CFO at Equity Bank since October 2013 and has served on the ESU Foundation’s Finance Committee. He was also the keynote speaker for the evening.
Students picking up individual honors included:
Stephen J. Butcher MBA: Shane Swink
NBEA Award of Merit: Paul Reichenberger
Business Faculty Endowed Scholarship: Caleb Weins
Outstanding Senior: Franzi Willenbuecher
Click here to view the Flickr album.
Beta Gamma Sigma
BizHornets David Szabo and Franzi Willenbuecher attended the Beta Gamma Sigma 2017 Global Leadership Summit Nov. 2–5 in Florida. The conference provided experience working with a team of leaders and the ability to improve communication and share leadership responsibilities; advice and insight from academic, corporate, and nonprofit thought leaders, most of whom are BGS alumni; and an expansive network of peers and connections reaching across the globe.
Beta Alpha Psi
 Ten BizHornets, majoring in either accounting or Information systems, were initiated into Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) on January 25. BAP is an International Honorary Organization for Financial Information Professionals. Pictured left to right: Tanner Cairns, Jade Dry, Megan French, Tatum Graves, Thomas LaRoche, Alex McAnerney, Kristi Pickett, Sowon Lee, Madeline Wood, and Sichen Xue.
 Beta Alpha Psi members assisted students at Riverside Elementary School with learning about financial literacy using Money Island, a program offered through ESB Financial. Pictured are Addie Lackey and Madison Wood with Riverside students.
Phi Beta Lambda
Fourteen BizHornets brought home 15 first place, 7 second place, and 7 third place finishes from the Kansas Phi Beta Lambda competition held at Butler Community College on Saturday, March 10. Twelve of our 14 students who earned placements are eligible to compete at the National Conference in June in Baltimore. James Willingham also brought home PBL Advisor of the Year.
Model United Nations
Photo: sitting David Szabo (left) and Simon Kleinmann (right), standing left-right: Astrid Buttner Costa, Joseline Terraz Sejas (ESU MUN Vice-President), Camila Ramos Ascarrunz (ESU MUN President), Amir Ammar, and Roberto Lara.
Members of the ESU Model United Nations (MUN) Club (faculty advisor Dr. Antonina Bauman) participated in the Harvard National Model United Nations 2018 Conference held February 15–18. Students represented two countries—Cuba and United Arab Emirates in four committees of the UN Simulation General Assembly organized by the Harvard University.
Alumni News
BizHornets in the Professional Development and Leadership for Accounting Majors class and high school business students from Emporia, Northern Heights, Olpe, and Hartford enjoyed the Etiquette Luncheon sponsored by Tim & Kristi Wright of Emporia. Thank you Tim & Kristi for your support of our students!
The Executive Hour
Brad Clark (BSB 1984-Business Administration) and Craig Clark (BSB 1986-Business Administration) have presented six sessions in the “Executive Hour” series, a forum to deliver real-world information on select topics, outline the relevance of the topic for a new college graduate, and make themselves available for questions. We appreciate the many hours these two brothers have given to the School of Business in sharing their expertise!
Daniel Williams and Stephanie Anderson (BSB 2013-Accounting) from Phillips 66 presented about the oil and gas industry and career opportunities in their presentation to Beta Alpha Psi on Thursday, March 1.
The Emporia Area Chamber and Visitors Bureau named Dynamic Discs as the 2017 Business of the Year. Congratulations to business alumni Jeremy Rusco (BSB 2006-Business Administration) for his success which started in 2005 as Jeremy’s college-based eBay hobby while he attended Emporia State University.
Commercial Insurance Workshop
13 BizHornets, Deena Wilson, and Dr. Ed Bashaw spent a couple days in Chicago for a Commercial Insurance Workshop hosted by alumni John Stibal (BSB 1982-Business Administration) with Unum and Mark Kendall (BSB 1984-Business Administration) with HUB International. The participants gained valuable knowledge about the commercial insurance business from experienced alumni.
Dr. Lea R. Gimenez (BS 2004-Economics), Paraguay, is the Minister of Finance in the country of Paraguay. She is the only woman in charge of a finance ministry in Latin America, and at 36 years of age, is the youngest in the continent. She is one of only seven Ministers of Finance who were educated in the United States.
Rodney S. Whittmer (BSE 1992-Business Education), Holton, has been selected as the KASSP Area 1 2017-2018 High School Principal of the Year.
Dr. Diane M. (Prior) DeBacker (BSB 1982-Business Education), Topeka, has been appointed by former Governor Sam Brownback as Executive Director of Business and Education Innovation at the Kansas Department of Commerce.
Jeff A. Beims (BSE 1991-Business Education, Social Sciences), Saint Francis, recently retired from Saint Francis High School after teaching American and World History as well as coaching for 25 years there. He has since started his own insurance company "Thunderbird Insurance" in Bird City.
Brian T. Rowley (BSE 2001-Business Education, MS 2001-Educational Administration), Udall, is the new Superintendent of USD 307 Ell-Saline.
Do you have information to share with us and/or your classmates? If so, please click here to share your news.
Faculty News
Dr. Derek Yonai, Director of Koch Center for Leadership & Ethics, conducted a workshop titled “Trade and Culture” on Oct. 21 at the 2017 Texas Council for the Social Studies Conference in Irving, TX. Also, on Oct. 23, Dr. Yonai gave a public lecture titled “The Need for Free Enterprise in Business Education” at Wheeling Jesuit University's Institute for the Study of Capitalism and Morality.
Assistant Professor, Steven Lovett, J.D., who served as appellate counsel on behalf of the former governor of the State of New Mexico, Susana Martinez, as well as other state officials, won an appeal issued on October 31, 2017, by the Texas Eighth Court of Appeals, Cause No. 08-14-00060-CV, that will become a published legal opinion in West Publishing’s South Western Reporter, 3d.
Dr. Christopher Stone and his coauthor, Dr. Jennifer Stone (Wichita State), presented their paper entitled “Enough with POLC: Using Education Theory to Improve the Teaching of Principles of Management” at the annual meeting of the Southern Management Association.
Dr. Antonina Bauman presented a paper, prepared with Dr. Jeffrey Muldoon and two colleagues from other universities, at the Southern Management Association conference in Florida. The presentation titled "Reassessing Elton Mayo" reviewed misconceptions about Mayo's contribution to studies of human relations in organizations.
On December 6, 2017, Dr. Steven Lovett, School of Business, served as the speaker for a National Business Institute teleconference during which he presented his conference paper entitled, “Legal Ethics: Smartphones and Other Mobile Devices,” to a national audience.
Dr. Douglass Smith has been accepted to present two papers at MBAA 2018 in Chicago: “Social Media: Student Predictors of Civic Engagement” and “Student Perceptions of Higher Education Data Collection.”
Dr. Joyce Zhou was mentioned in the article “VR and AR: Learners as Creators and World Builders of Our Immersive Future” the EDUCAUSE.
Congratulations to Dr. Joyce Zhou for receiving two awards: Presidential Award for Diversity and 2018 Mary Headrick Award.
Dr. Antonina Bauman presented her paper "Competency Based Education - say what?" at the 16th Annual Hawaii International Conference on Education in Honolulu in January 2018.
Dr. Douglass Smith passed the Project Management Institute's Project Management Professional (PMP) exam. The PMP is a highly important industry-recognized certification for project managers.
The Koch Center for Leadership and Ethics hosted a session at the Association for Private Enterprise Education meetings in Las Vegas which took place April 1-4. A panel, moderated by Center Director Dr. Derek Yonai, spoke about their teaching projects supported by the Koch Center and included a teaching demonstration by Professors Dr. Kevin Johnson and Dr. Steve Lovett. The panel included Dr. Matt Seimears, two of his students (Kaitlyn Isch and Maya VanTrece), Dr. Sara Schwerdtfeger, Dr. Kevin Johnson, and Dr. Steve Lovett. Dr. Yonai also presented his paper, “Rational Irrationality: Incivility, the new normal?” in a separate session titled, “Ethics, Philosophy, and Sociology.”
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