Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/674746
75 Years of Achievement 19 PROGRAMS ENTREPRENEURSHIP BOOTCAMP FOR VETERANS WITH DISABILITIES (EBV) ere is a reason the UConn School of Business has been named a "Best for Vets'' by Military Times for the past three years. "Disability is not a barrier to successful entrepreneurship," said retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. Michael Zacchea '12 MBA, director of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV ). Established at UConn in 2010, the program has gone above and beyond in giving veterans skills to start businesses. e 135 graduates have, thus far, started 98 businesses. Zacchea says the EBV covers bootcamp expenses, gives each veteran a laptop, and assigns business school mentors to help them craft business plans. "We continue to provide support to our veterans long after they graduate… We are still working with the veterans from our first class," said Zacchea — with plenty of success stories along the way. MBA PROGRAM "We have redesigned ourselves to become a powerhouse MBA school in data-driven and evidence-based decision making," said Suresh Nair, professor and associate dean for graduate programs. "It is not your parents' MBA program anymore." Celebrating nearly 60 years, the MBA program underwent a significant redesign in 2014 to reflect changing needs. But Nair said one thing has remained the same: degree affordability. "We are consistently ranked among the top MBA programs in the country for value," he said. Regular student surveys of the pro- gram, input from corporate partners, experiential learning op- portunities and a global focus help ensure a progressive program. e current student body comes from all over the U.S., as well as 11 other countries. "Students learn a great deal from each oth- er and the way business is conducted from all parts of our world," he said. PH.D. PROGRAM e mission of UConn's Ph.D. program in business is to pre- pare academic scholars to conduct state-of-the-art research and to assume faculty positions at leading universities and business schools. "From the moment they arrive, our doctoral students are ex- posed to the research environment and guided by renowned fac- ulty," said Sulin Ba, professor and associate dean of academic and research support. "During the five-year program, doctoral students attend research seminars, host a Ph.D. speaker series featuring prominent faculty from other top research universities, present original research at major conferences, and ultimately build a strong research foundation that will serve them well in their academic careers." On the cusp of celebrating its 30th anniversary, the Ph.D. Pro- gram will soon surpass 200 doctoral students who have defended their dissertations. Job placements include: Arizona State, Mich- igan State University, Penn State, University of Kentucky, Uni- versity of Tennessee, and University of West Virginia. BUSINESS CONNECTIONS LEARNING COMMUNITY (BCLC) e Business Connections Learning Community (BCLC) — a residential living program for business students that offers en- hancements to the curriculum — began in 2010 and took little time to pick up steam, said Nathan Ives, community co-director. Participants take clustered courses together, experience group trips to companies where alumni work, and can take an interna- tional immersion experience trip to places such as China, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, France, Germany and Spain. Networking is also a key component of the program. "If we give very young and eager students the immediate op- portunity to learn how best to engage with business professionals early in their academic careers… we'll help propel them in their chosen discipline," said Ives, who is also the School's director of alumni relations. "Our alumni are incredibly supportive and very willing to engage with our students. So it's a classic win-win." EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING For many years, experiential learning — the opportunity for students to apply the concepts they've learned in the classroom to the realities of the business world — has been an inseparable aspect of business education at UConn. For instance, the finance department's highly regarded Stu- dent Managed Fund teams invest money in the stock market as a precursor to their careers. And for many years, the School's edgelab learning accelerator, in partnership with General Electric, paired UConn students, professors and General Electric business experts to solve some 130 vexing business problems for the com- pany. In the early 2000s, the program, which was supported by alumnus and GE Capital Chairman and CEO Denis Nayden '76, '77 MBA, was considered one of the most innovative, cut- ting-edge partnerships between a business school and a private company. Fast-forward to today, and our portfolio of experiential learn- ing opportunities has evolved and expanded into the Experiential Learning Collaborative (ELC) with projects operating in Hart- ford and Stamford; the Innovation Accelerator in East Hartford which focuses on Connecticut high-tech start-ups; and SCOPE, a program focused on social entrepreneurship and sustainability in the U.S. and abroad. "Participation in collaborative projects introduces students to contemporary business practices and helps business executives rec- ognize the high potential of UConn students as their future em- ployees,'' said Greg Kivenzor, ELC director. "Overall, experiential learning is among the most forward-looking initiatives because it helps students develop even stronger practical business skills.'' Students have worked on developing new business models in the manufacturing industry in the U.S., enhancing the athlete experience of Special Olympians, and helping entrepreneurs develop sustainable businesses in remote villages in Africa and Latin America, to name a few. "Our students learn through hands-on experience how to use their business skills and knowledge to make a positive difference as agents of change in the world,'' said Wynd Harris, marketing professor and SCOPE director. n