The College of Business & Public Administration (CoBPA) is on its way to transformational success through the development of our new strategic priorities which have been identified by the Executive Committee at the CoBPA. These three areas are: Experiential Learning, Career Development, and Quality Research.

Experiential Learning continues in the college through the many student organizations, honor societies, and study abroad experiences. We are proud of the success that our Student Managed Investment Fund has achieved by winning the 2011 RISE Competition for their Bond Portfolio in the fixed income category. This group has continued to show exceptional success and growth through the strong leadership of Dr. Steve Dennis, Chair of the Finance department. As we look to the future, we are focused on developing more financial support to assist students in attending a variety of competitions and workshops as well as subsidizing travel expenses for study abroad experiences.

Students choose a business college not only for its reputation, but to find a rewarding job and a successful career in business. The CoBPA recognizes this, and is focused on assisting students to make this transition to the business world. Our newly developed Pancratz Career Center opened in the fall of 2010, with a generous gift from Linda & Mark Pancratz. We now have direct services available for students to develop their skill set to find successful career opportunities.

We hold a strong tradition of teaching excellence, which has produced world class alumni that have helped us grow the college to what it is today. “Champion” faculty are instrumental for the future of our college as they produce high quality research, which in turn makes them better instructors and engages students more effectively in their areas of study.

As a college we will continue thinking about what the future holds and the advancements we need to make to transform the educational experience for our students. By expanding on our current successes and looking to the future, we are on our way to creating a new business school experience for the next generation of business leaders.

Dennis J. Elbert, Ph.D.
Professor of Marketing and Dean
College of Business and Public Administration