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Student News & Accomplishments

• NIU Management Students Earn National Recognition
  The NIU Chapter of the Society for Advancement of Management (SAM) has been nationally recognized for its work over the past semesters. NIU's Student Chapter received an Outstanding Chapter Award for its performance as it relates to the NIU chapter's activities, community projects, recruiting, and financial management of chapter resources. Among the students who contributed to the organizations success are Jim Smith, Jake Johnsen, Tiffany Krawisz, and Blake Powers. A special thanks also goes to to Bart Sharp-Assistant Professor or Management and faculty advisor to SAM.


• MIS Student wins 1st place in the SAP Design Thinking Jam competition (February 23, 2013)
  MIS graduate student Carlos Salgado won the first place award at the SAP Design Thinking Jam student competition in Milwaukee last Saturday. Design thinking is a new way of solving business and technical problems by putting the end user in the middle of the process to collaboratively identify problems and creatively find solutions. Approximately 50 students from 12 universities participated in this competition. Carlos joined three other team members from University of Illinois at Chicago and Indiana University to win the first place award. A total of 6 students from the NIU OM&IS Department participated in the SAP competition. Dr. Nancy Russo attended the 2013 SAP conference in Milwaukee and served as faculty advisor for the NIU students.


• Sales students claim top honors at World Collegiate Sales Open (February 21-23, 2013)
  Three of NIU's own competed in the 3rd annual World Collegiate Sales Open, held in Barsema Hall on February 21st-23rd. Marketing majors Abbey Vanderwoude, Nicole Weldon, and Nick Kochetta found their way to the Top 20 from over 148 original participants from a total of 27 universities and 8 countries. At the close of the competition Abbey Vanderwoude took home the overall win for NIU while Nicole placed 3rd overall. Nick Kochetta received a 2nd place award for the Voicemail portion of the competition. The team was coached by Rob Peterson -- Associate Professor and White Lodging Professor of Sales -- who takes over as CEO of the WCSO in 2014. The WCSO brings together students, faculty coaches, and business professionals from around the world to test students' knowledge and use of key selling principles through a variety of selling and business scenarios.


• Management students bring home hardware from IL State HR Games (February 23-24, 2013)
  Late this February, four NIU College of Business management students competed in the Illinois State HR Games. These statewide HR Games involve several competition levels. NIU students Kristen Hartman and Brittany Kroenig took first place in the The Society for Human Resource Management HR Games competition. Jason May, Danielle Harris, Kristen Hartman and Brittany Kroening received the first place award for the HR Case Competition. Teams from universities across the state competed during these competitions, which were held at Eastern Illinois University. Terry Bishop, NIU Professor of Management and SHRM faculty advisor, traveled with the team, as did two NIU Department of Management alumni Kris Malecki and Bailee Billhymer.


• 3 NIU Scholar-Athletes names Capital One All-Americans (December 2012)
  Three NIU football players -- two of whom are NIU business majors -- were named to the Capital One Academic All-America Division I Football Team. Selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, these fine NIU scholar-athletes are: Finance major Alan Baxter; Accountancy major Nabal Jefferson, who is also the NFF National Scholar-Athlete; and, Engineering major Jason Schepler. The selection of defensive end Alan Baxter to the first team, and noseguard Nabal Jefferson and tight end Jason Schepler to the second team gave NIU three selections to the first and second teams, the most of any NCAA Division I team.


• Student Athletes named to Capital One Academic All-District Team
  Four members of the NIU football team -- three of whom are NIU Business students -- have been named to the Capital One Academic All-District V first team by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Alan Baxter (Finance), Nabal Jefferson (Accountancy and recently awarded the NFF National Scholar-Athlete designation), Jason Schepler (Electrical Engineering), and Rob Sterling (Accountancy) will advance to the Capital One Academic All-America ballot for 2012 in the hopes of being selected for the Academic All-America Team. To be nominated, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve, possess a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or above and be at least a sophomore in eligibility. In late November, the Capital One Academic All-America Team will be announced.


• Marketing students take top awards at AMA Regional Sales Competition
  Antonio Garay, Alex Nocom, and Nick Kochetta -- NIU Marketing majors and American Marketing Association (AMA) members -- brought home hardware from the AMA Regional Sales Competition in Whitewater, Wisconsin. The group took home three of the top six prizes in the competition, which included a first place for Nick, and two Runner Up's won by Alex and Antonio.


• NIU Accountancy student-athlete named NFF National Scholar-Athlete (October 2012)
  Nabal Jefferson - accountancy major and NIU football defensive tackle - was tapped to receive the 2012 NFF National Scholar-Athlete award. The announcement came from the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame. Nabal is among an elite group of 15 student-athletes nationwide (out of a pool of 147) who were selected for this award because of their outstanding leadership and citizenship, as well as outstanding performance in academics and in sports. As a NFF National Scholar-Athlete, Nabal is also automatically in the list of finalists for the 2012 William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best scholar-athlete in the nation. Nabal is the second NFF National Scholar-Athlete from NIU's College of Business, with management and MBA alumnus Chandler Harnish earning the designation in 2011. Nabal's previous honors include being named a two-time Academic All-MAC honoree, a CoSIDA First Team Academic All-District seleciton and a MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week as a junior. read more...


• Accountancy student team places 1st in business competition (Fall 2012)
  Department of Accountancy student Wenjing Li and her team members won first place at the IAEP (Internal Audit) Leadership Conference. Since the inception six years ago of the IAEP conference, the Department of Accountancy has had a student on the winning team each year. This case competition attracts students from diverse US and international universities and also requires the students to utilize knowledge of business and accounting topics beyond auditing.


• OM&IS business students make an impact while learning by doing (Spring 2012)
  In Spring 2012, OM&IS students not only learned the concepts behind organizing and managing business projects but they made a genuine difference in the community at the same time. The Department of Operations Management & Information Systems course on business project management challenged students to apply their learning to help provide food, clothing, and other resources to worthwhile causes in the surrounding university community. The spring 2012 projects were "Healing Hustle," a 5k run for which the students generated $1,300 in donations to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project, and; an electronics recycling drive for which the students realized a collection of over 70,000 pounds of electronic scrap, which translated to a $3,000 donation to Habitat for Humanity.


• Executive MBA class prompts $100,000 gift from True Value (June 2012)
  The experience of an executive from the True Value Company in an NIU Executive MBA class led to a $100,000 gift from True Value to the Northern Illinois Food Bank (NIFB). John Donigian, True Value's vice president of inventory management, was a member of an NIU Executive MBA student team that was charged with increasing the visibility of and donations to the NIFB. Donigian was so impressed by what he learned of NIFB through this class project that he shared what he learned with other True Value executives. The result was a donation of $100,000 in household goods, which will be given to the NIFB over the course of 12 months. Peter Schaefer, president and CEO of Northern Illinois Food Bank, said, "This terrific gift is a result of the hard work and innovative ideas developed by NIU Executive MBA students. The insight these students provided through their project will help us feed more hungry neighbors in DeKalb and 12 other northern Illinois counties." read more...


• "Light Up Africa" wins People's Choice Award and advances to specialty finalist in the Dell Innovation Challenge (May 2012)
  "Light Up Africa" - a project created by students in the Department of Management's Social Entrepreneurship class - won the People's Choice Award in the Energy Category of the Dell Social Innovation Challenge (DSIC). DSIC connects university students to the people, tools and opportunities they need to change the world. In this year's competition, "Light Up Africa" placed No. 1 out of 129 in the energy category. Additionally, Dell tapped "Light Up Africa" to compete in June for the $15,000 Tomberg Prize in Dell's Environmental Sustainability category; the NIU students who created this project will compete against a team from Dartmouth and a team from the University of Dhaka, in Bangladesh.


• NIU Business chapter of SAM places 2nd at Nationals (April 2012)
  The college's student chapter of the Society for Advancement of Management attended a national conference and was awarded a second place Outstanding Chapter Award for its performance as it relates to the NIU chapter's activities, community projects, recruiting, and financial management of chapter resources. Congratulations to student board members Norm Crawford, Jim Smith, Tiffany Krawisz, Maurice Bell, and Jake Johnsen. Congratulations to faculty advisors Bart Sharp and Stephanie Henagan.


• NIU marketing student Troy White "winner on and off field" (April 12 2002, Chicago Tribune)
  A Chicago Tribune story, "Winner on and off field" showcases the heart and soul of Troy White, an NIU business senior who is also co-captain of NIU's baseball team. The story describes White's journey from a stellar high school student-athlete in a sport not as heavily recruited as football or basketball to a walk-on university-level student athlete. With a deeply rooted sense of perseverance and work ethic, White applied for and earned a Jackie Robinson scholarship. Now a last-semester senior, White graduates in May 2012 from NIU with a strong education in business, as a Mid-American Conference second-team all-star, an Academic All-MAC choice, and a young man committed to making a positive impact in the lives of others. White currently is also among an elite group of candidates nationwide for the Lowe's Senior Class Award for baseball. The award is given to an NCAA Division I athlete with notable achievements in community, classroom, character, and competition. read more...


• NIU Business Chapter of Pi Sigma Epsilon Places First at National Convention (March 13 - 18, 2012)
  The Northern Illinois University (NIU) College of Business Gamma Zeta chapter of Pi Sigma Epsilon placed first in the "Top Management Team Competition" at the 2012 Pi Sigma Epsilon National Convention held in Indianapolis, Indiana. Additionally, the chapter received recognition for sustained excellence and three of its members received scholarships for their service to NIU's chapter. Over 500 collegiate, alumni, educator and professional PSE members meet each spring to participate in various chapter and individual competitions, seminars and networking events.


• NIU garners awards during the Second Annual World Collegiate Sales Open (February 24-25 2012)
  A five-month intensive university sales competition, the World Collegiate Sales Open (WCSO) began with 192 students with faculty coaches who competed from around the country and seven countries. The competition culminated in a Champion Round event in which 20 finalists qualified to vie for the top spots. This year, of the 20 finalists, five NIU business students competed, with one taking third place overall. Congratulations to the following NIU Business winners: Corey Kravitz (3rd place winner overall, 1st place winner telephone sales call, 2nd place winner elevator pitch); Chareen Bogner (3rd place winner telephone sales call, 1st place winner voice mail competition, 1st place winner appointment call), and White Lodging Professor in Sales Robert Peterson who won the Outstanding Faculty Coach award. Other competitors included students from Michigan State, Baylor University, Elon University, Portsmouth University (United Kingdom), Viener Neustadt University (Austria), Akron, and UW-Whitewater. Students winning 1st, 2nd, and 4th place were from the University of Akron, Michigan State University, and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, respectively.


• Light Up Africa, a cross-college student team project wins Social Venture Business Plan Competition (December 2011, also see the December 11, 2001 Chicago Tribune story: "NIU Kids Do Good")
  A student team of NIU Business students and an NIU Engineering student won $10,000 in seed money to implement their innovative business solution that addresses the problem of unreliable access to electricity in many parts of the world, including Kenya. The Light Up Africa team members consists of: NIU Business students John Harkness, Mike Sutarik, Jason Schwebke and NIU Engineering student Alan Hurt. For their semester-long project, the Light Up Africa student team members were challenged in the college's management course -- which culminated in its first annual Social Venture Business Plan Competition -- to identify a social "gap" anywhere in the world. The students then were required to perform market research on their idea, develop a fully articulated business plan, and present and defend it to a panel of judges -- including angel investors -- in the final competition, which was held December 8, 2011. Light Up Africa's businesss solution involves utilitzing kinetic energy in an innovative way: by applying this technology in the form of a personal device designed specifically to attach to bicycles, motorbikes, livestock, and boats. Light Up Africa addresses the problem of unreliable access to electricity by providing African residents with the means to supply their own electricity for a small upfront investment, instead of having to wait for a large government investment in energy infrastructure. The college's Social Venture course offered out of its Department of Management saw enrollments from students across the university.
  
  The college congratulates the winning team Light Up Africa, with honorable mentions of the remaining five teams and their proposed business concepts: Appropriate Technologies, focused on water extraction technology to produce safe drinking water from oxygen; New Horizons, provider of incubator services to help poor Latinos gain the necessary business skills to start or run an income-generating business, in the DeKalb/Aurora area; Revolution, a cosmetology school in Aurora designed to help students with learning disabilities; Open Door, a job training and placement for homeless and other disadvantaged people in Rockford; and, Holistic innovations, provider of sustainable, organic food sources for university dining halls.


• NIU College of Business student-athlete named Second-Team All-American (December 2011)
  Scott Wedige -- senior marketing major in the NIU College of Business -- was named Second-Team All-American by CBSSports.com. Wedige has the distinction of being the only Mid-American Conference player on either first or second team. Additionally, he is the first NIU student to be named to an All-American team since 2008, when Larry English was named as a third team selection. The CBSSports.com All-American teams are typically littered with big names from big schools, making Wedige and NIU's placement among them another mark of distinction. Student-athletes who have the honor of being named to the All-American teams are voted there by sports writers, bloggers, and CBSSports.com staff.


• NIU Business students place among the top in national sales competition (November 2011)
  Paul Nowak and Corey Kravitz -- both NIU College of Business seniors and students in the college's sales classes -- won high honors at the 2011 Russ Berrie Institute National Sales Challenge at William Paterson University in New Jersey. The competition ran from November 9th-11th and attracted student teams from some of the nation's leading business programs. The 2011 National Sales Challenge (NSC) brought sales students from 29 schools across the country to meet with representatives from major corporations for competitive events, including a sales role play and speed selling. The speed selling round allowed competitors the challenge of selling themselves to potential employers in a 2 minute timeframe, followed by a 1 minute question and answer period. Paul Nowak placed 3rd in the speed selling event and was ranked 2nd in the overall NSC competition. The NIU College of Business team of Corey Kravitz and Paul Nowak also earned 4th place team honors in the competition. Kravitz said, "It was a frenetic, real setting" ... an experience that helped build his confidence and improved his sales abilities. Nowak shared how his coursework at NIU's College of Business, particularly two sales courses in the Department of Marketing, "naturally prepped us for the sales competition." The college's professional sales program in the Department of Marketing was named among the "Top University Sales Programs for 2011" by the Sales Education Foundation, an organization that reviews existing university sales programs worldwide each year to identify and recognize the top programs.


• Business Student-Athletes named to 2011 Academic All-MAC Baseball Team
  Marketing major Kyle Glancy and BSBA major Troy White were two of three NIU student athletes named to the 2011 Academic All-MAC Baseball Team. The Academic All-MAC honor is reserved for student-athletes who have excelled in athletics and academics. BSBA major and co-captain Troy White carries a 3.25 GPA and turned in equally impressive athletic performances that caused White to be a two-time 2011 MAC West Division Player of the Week honoree. Ranking ninth in the MAC in runs and triples, the Chicago native was also named a Second Team All-MAC performer. Marketing major Kyle Glancy carries a 3.388 GPA and also turned in an equally outstanding athletic performance...enough, in fact, to be named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NBCWA) Stopper of the Year watch list. During this baseball season, the Oak Park, Ill., native led the team with a 2.89 ERA and 24 appearances. In 28 innings, he fanned 23 and held opponents to a .262 batting average against while posting a 1-0 record. His 12 saves ranked second in the MAC and 26th in the nation (as of June 13). read more...



• Business Students received Outstanding Women Student Awards
  Four NIU Business Students received the university's 2011 Outstanding Women Student Award for their academic and personal achievements as well as their contributions to the overall NIU community. The NIU business students to win the award are: Adoree Bryant (Business Administration), Deidre Evans (Business Administration), Kathleen Johnson (Accountancy), and Kylie Revelle (Business Administration). These outstanding individuals were among 48 women from across the university to receive the award. Collectively, the 48 award winners represent undergraduate, graduate, and law students. The university's program to recognize outstanding women students was created in 1980 and is held annually to celebrate their achievements, encourage participation in all facets of the university experience, and support the development of collaborative and competitive strengths. read more...