We trust your summer is progressing nicely and that you are accomplishing everything you set out to do. The Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business is currently engaged in welcoming new students and their parents through summer orientation programs. Our new undergraduate iBBA degree program begins this fall, and through it our new students will be able to explore and identify individual interests and goals and establish an individualized program of study. There will be no pre-packaged major, but rather a specialized degree uniquely framed by each student and their faculty mentor.

In this issue of the Byrd Business Review, we offer you the latest Economic Outlook prepared by Dr. Clifford Thies, Lindsay Chair of Economics; student, faculty and staff award information; information on our latest faculty hire; and a description of a recently completed real-world class project. We hope you enjoy reading this e-letter and, as always, the Dean's Office door in Henkel Hall is always open to you for a visit when you're in Winchester.

W. Randy Boxx, Dean
rboxx@su.edu

2005 Student Award Winners



At the Student Awards Ceremony on May 7, 2005, an outstanding group of business school students were recognized for their exceptional accomplishments during their academic career at Shenandoah University. These students were selected by the Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business faculty as those students who will most likely make a major impact on society and the world of international business. These students extracted the most out of their college education and have contributed to the betterment of Shenandoah University. The 2005 award winners are:



Kristin Lee Howerton – Alumni Award for an Outstanding Senior
Tammy D. Bullock – James R. and Mary B. Wilkins Award
Carly A. Higbee – Graduate Student Dean’s Award
Karen Jo Lappalainen – Undergraduate Student Dean’s Award
Walter W. Green – Herbert L. Myers Award
Julie Marie Bean – Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants Award of Achievement
Joshua C. Bosley – Distinguished Best of Business Award

Christina L. Campbell and Erin L. Brakensiek – Undergraduate Business School Advisory Council Annual Industry Awards for Academic Excellence

Mikhail Bogdanov and Sergey V. Kulyagin – Graduate Business School Advisory Council Annual Industry Awards for Academic Excellence

Christopher G. Campbell – Student Entrepreneur of the Year

Simpson Wins Wilkins Award

Linda Simpson (left), administrative assistant in the Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business, received one of the 2005 Shenandoah University Wilkins Awards for outstanding service as a staff member. The award was established by James R. and Mary B. Wilkins to create an incentive for excellence at the university. Employed by Shenandoah for the past 10 years (the last five in the Dean’s Office in the business school), Linda said she continually focuses her work on assisting students and faculty with whatever issues they may have. “I never turn anyone away from the Dean’s Office, and I try to solve every problem that comes up. I always try to go above and beyond my job description.” Linda added, “I’m excited about the direction the school is going. The AACSB International accreditation work and the school’s building program are important goals that we will accomplish.” Linda is a can-do person with a positive attitude, and we are so pleased she is a part of our team.

Sample Receives Byrd Award for Exemplary Service

Dr. Travis Sample (left), professor of public administration, received the 2005 Byrd Award for Exemplary Service, an award recognizing a full-time faculty member who has rendered exemplary service to the university, school, community and academic profession. The faculty member's professional life must be characterized by a long-term commitment to service activities. Travis has said his personal philosophy of service to others extends back to the personal teachings of his parents, but it has matured significantly through his 26-year Air Force officer experience. He believes "true freedom is the total absence of concern for yourself while being concerned about serving others. Service is the dividing line which separates two groups of people - those who help and those who hinder, those who lift up and those who lean upon, those who contribute and those who only consume." For his many years of professional service, we acknowledge his many contributions to building a stronger university and community.

Proe Receives U. S. Army Air Medal

Dr. John Proe (left), professor of management and health care administration, recently received the U. S. Army Air Medal for exemplary service during the Vietnam War. This Web link provides Dr. Proe's observations about the award. In addition to those observations, I took a few moments to talk with John about leadership lessons learned from his military experience. "Your job is to get people to do their work willingly," John said. "This comes about by knowing your people well and knowing what's important to them. People are well trained with a synthesis occurring when they work together as a team. I try to impart military lessons learned every time I go to the classroom. I see my students as the future leaders of their countries. I want them to be the best at what they do, wherever they are located. That is a responsibility I take very seriously." John continued, "Over the years, I've learned a lot about unintended consequences of decision making. What we do -- the decisions we make, the choices we make -- does not occur in a vacuum; it impacts many people in many places. Neither faculty nor students can operate without support or help from others. We work together as a unified team to get better and be more productive. In the field of education, we must seek excellence and continually improve our school. Several principles of leadership and administration are very important to me as I go about doing my work each day -- integrity, respect for others, planning and visioning, implementation, measuring and caring. In summary, leadership is love -- for those you lead, for those you work for and for your own organization. Good leaders must learn and recognize this."

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Faculty Connections to the Real World

The Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business prides itself in its faculty connecting with private, public and community organizations and providing services to those organizations. The attached article describes the efforts rendered by Dr. Giles Jackson (left) and his marketing research degree-completion students at the Northern Virginia Campus in Leesburg with the Voices for Children Campaign. Both students and the organization benefited from research provided by our student body.

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SPECIAL REPORT

Thies Describes Current Economic Outlook - June 2005 >>>







CLIFFORD F. THIES
Eldon R. Lindsay Professor
of Economics and Finance