Tuyet “Hannah” Nguyen was all smiles with her large cheering section of parents, grandparents, sisters, aunts and cousins when she became her family’s first university graduate. A grandmother she had never seen, Hoa Nguyen, on the right in a purple jacket, flew in from Vietnam.

Personal achievement may be the essence of Commencement, but the heart is family. Family pride threatened to burst the Edmunds Center on May 12 as more than 350 School of Business Administration graduates moved from academic success toward lives of significance.

Mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, cousins and aunts and uncles and other family members converged from across town, across state and oceans to celebrate accomplishments of their grads.

Business degrees accounted for about 40 percent of the 785 degrees conferred by Stetson University in two ceremonies on the DeLand campus the day before Mother’s Day. Business School undergraduates received 166 diplomas and post-graduate students received 193. A third ceremony on the College of Law campus in Gulfport brought the total of all Stetson diplomas awarded May 12 to more than 1,100.

Among the business graduates, Maksim Levanovich’s father came from Eastern Europe and other relatives came from Northern Asia. Jillian Masucci’s family came from Florida and Georgia. Tuyet “Hannah” Nguyen’s grandmother came from Southeast Asia to join a dozen other family members.

Jillian Masucci of Port Orange had the honor of speaking to her fellow graduates and felt the strong support of her numerous family members in the audience.

“Having my family there was the best gift I could have ever asked for,” said Nguyen, of Winter Haven. “My family, especially my sisters and cousins, are the reasons why I worked so hard in school. I want them to be able to see that even though our family has struggled due to finance, migration, language barriers and other things, they can still accomplish their goals.”

Masucci, of Port Orange, said that knowing her supportive family was with her swept away any nervousness when she stood to speak to thousands inside the Edmunds Center. She was chosen to represent all Business School graduates.

“These last four years in this institution have developed us into strong, independent young men and women,” she told her classmates. And afterward, confided: “I am so glad so many members of my family could share in that moment.”

“There is no doubt (we) will be a driving force in making our world a better place,” Massuci, a 4.0-GPA Finance and Economics major, said in her address. She is moving on to graduate school: “The world is now at our fingertips. Anything is possible.”

Her words echoed the charge to graduates given by University President Wendy B. Libby: “Be of use.”

Business Graduate Maksim Levanovich shares the special day with his father, Aliaksei, who flew from Eastern Europe for Commencement Day.

Levanovich is anxious to be of use.

“These were the best four years of my life,” said Levanovich, a Finance and International Business major from Minsk, Belarus. “But I am extremely excited to move on into the real world, new opportunities and to continue developing myself both personally and professionally.”

Levanovich reports to work at Reunion Bank in Port Orange this month and wants to live and work in the United States.

“I am extremely happy that my father, Aliaksei, was able to be with me during this important moment in my life,” he said. His aunt and uncle also came from Moscow. “My family has been tremendously supportive and understanding throughout these four years and I owe them a lot for that.”

Nguyen, who dedicated her graduation to her family, had an exceptionally large cheering section when she received her degree – 14 family members watched, including her paternal grandmother, Hoa, who came all the way from Vietnam to share the special event. Nguyen had never seen her father’s mother in person.

Two other grandparents attended, as did her parents, Con Van and Trinh, who left Vietnam when Trinh was pregnant with Nguyen. There were sisters and cousins and aunts, all proud of the first member of their family to graduate from a university.

Raised in refugee camps in the Philippines, Nguyen came to the United States when she was 10 as her parents sought a better life for her and her sisters.

“I know for a fact,” said Nguyen, “that if it wasn’t for my parents’ unconditional love for me and risking everything to bring me to this country, I would have never had the honor to graduate from a prestigious school. And I definitely would not be the woman that I am today.”

She is headed to Costa Rica to help a nonprofit there, then returning to work with Stetson students engaged in service projects. In a year or so, she plans to begin work toward her MBA, “so I can complete my dedication of ultimate success to my family.”

Kaylyn Varnum of Lynn Haven carries the School of Business Administration’s gonfalon banner as she leads graduates into the Edmunds Center.

Among those recognized at Commencement were 77 students inducted in the last year into Beta Gamma Sigma, the international honor society providing the highest academic recognition for business students.

Stetson’s rigorous Honors Program produced two Business School graduates: Martin Zahn, Port Orange, an International Business major, and Rishi K. Sharma, Daytona Beach, who majored in Finance and Management Information Systems.

Two business students in the U.S. Army ROTC Program were recognized for being commissioned as second lieutenants. They are Kristina Diaz of Melbourne, a Marketing major, and Tracy Ross of Framingham, Mass., an International Business major.

Kaylyn Varnum, a 4.0-GPA Accounting major from Lynn Haven, was chosen by the business dean to carry the school’s gonfalon banner and lead the procession, an honor bestowed because of “her impressive record of recognitions, honors and a deep human service legacy.”

Many photographs of Commencement are posted online at Stetson’s Commencement site or at Stetson’s Flickr photo site.

To be sure, there are other vital elements of the Transitions conferences – the most recent of which was in Orlando in April – but personal family stories about family business in a private setting are a central ingredient for success in the competitive field of business conferences.

Barbara Spector, Family Business Magazine editor-in-chief

“What makes the Transitions conference series unique is its emphasis on family-to-family education,” said Barbara Spector, editor-in-chief of Family Business Magazine. “Family business stakeholders speak directly to attendees, describing their strategies for resolving real-world family and business dilemmas.

“The conference offers a safe, confidential environment where participants can share their family business stories,” she said.

Business leaders discuss sensitive subjects like sibling rivalry and conflict, how much to pay a relative, dealing with in-laws in the business, who should own what and how much, transitioning to the next generation, writing policies and managing wealth.

“The focus is on the families telling and sharing their stories,” said Dr. Greg McCann, founder and director of the Family Enterprise Center in the School of Business Administration.

Dr. Greg McCann, Family Enterprise Center director

Transitions has another elemental focus, said McCann, one that is multifaceted and as important to the Business School as the family business is to those who attend a Transitions conference.

“It’s an opportunity to showcase one of our most innovative programs, promote our students, recruit interested stakeholders, and inform the premier family enterprises from across the nation what Stetson is a great place to learn,” McCann said.

“At the conference we were able to have our Family Enterprise students in the audience, on the event staff and on the speaking panels,” said Peter Begalla, instructor and outreach program manager for Stetson’s Family Enterprise Center. “Having our students meet such amazing multi-generational family enterprises is wonderful for Stetson, the student, and those family members.

Family business stories, told in many settings, are an integral part of sharing personal knowledge at Transition conferences. Many were told in small groups around tables like those shown here at the Orlando conference.

“The event truly showcases the significance of a Stetson education,” Begalla said.

Family Business Magazine promotes Stetson and the Transitions conferences at the top of the magazine’s website and in its print edition.

The magazine takes pride in the partnership with Stetson’s Family Enterprise Center, which Spector called “a pioneer in educating and training the next generation of family business stakeholders.”

The third East Coast Transitions conference had nearly 200 participants – sponsors, speakers, staffers and members of a wide range of family businesses seeking exceptional and expert knowledge. The conference was held at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Orlando, owned by a The Kessler Collection, a family business of hotels. Planning is underway for the second West Coast conference, in the Los Angeles area in November.

Informal networking opportunities for those in family business are an opportunity for more intimate, one-on-one exchanges of issues and solutions.

All have been sell-outs and received glowing reviews from participants. Numerous nationally known speakers, all engaged in family business, sit with owners and managers to discuss matters that concern them all.

Family businesses as old as seven and eight generations from across the nation and Canada took part in the April Transitions conference. Engaged in a wide range of enterprise, including agriculture, mining, entertainment, construction, finance and entertainment, they employed an average of almost 1,000 and had average annual revenues of $217 million.

“Each one fills a specific need in a specialty area,” said outgoing Dean Stuart Michelson. Two are recent Ph.D.s, and the third is defending his doctoral dissertation this month. All have strong Florida ties.

Dr. Deborah Goldring

Dr. Deborah Goldring, a tenure-track assistant professor of Marketing, comes from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. Dr. Matthew Hurst, a tenure-track assistant professor of Finance, comes from the University of Central Florida in Orlando. Giovanni Fernandez is a visiting assistant professor of Finance who comes from Florida International University in Miami.

Fernandez is a Miami Beach native who has lived in a large city all his life, taught at a large school and said he wants a “change of pace.” He looks forward to living in a smaller community and teaching smaller classes in a smaller school.

“Teaching is much more enjoyable with smaller classes,” Fernandez said. “It allows one to truly understand the students’ needs.”

Hurst, whose family has lived in the Orlando area since the 1930s, said he was attracted to the School of Business because of its focus on student learning and low student-to-teacher ratio.

“Small class sizes and personalized attention really fit my style of teaching,” he said.

Goldring grew up in South Florida, graduated from Miami Beach High School, earned her first master’s degree at the University of Miami and started a two-decade marketing career with a job in Coconut Grove.

“As a longtime Florida resident, I am well acquainted with Stetson’s reputation for high quality, student-centered teaching,” she said. “I am particularly attracted to the small classes and the on-campus living experience for students.”

Goldring has deep experience in corporate promotions and product development in Pennsylvania and Florida, as well as the classroom. She owned a marketing business and was a public radio and television reporter and producer. Her University of Pennsylvania undergraduate degree is in Urban Studies. She has published in professional journals four times in the last five years and made four conference presentations.

Her research interests are in marketing strategy, corporate marketing, business-to-business marketing and integrated marketing communications. Academic interests focus on how an organizations’ marketing can be more effective and efficient.

“I am interested in marketing strategy from both the corporate level and functional level,” she said. “I am also interested in integrated marketing communications, especially in the online environment.”

She met her husband, Lee, at the University of Miami School of Business. They have two children, both students at the University of Florida. She hikes, bikes and works out, as well as reads and visits art museums.

Dr. Matthew Hurst

Hurst will teach Real Estate Principles and Corporate Finance at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Since 2008, he has taught investments, real estate and corporate finance as a teaching assistant and instructor at UCF, where he was recognized for excellence in graduate student teaching.

In addition to his teaching subjects, Hurst’s research interests include executive compensation, mutual funds, real estate investment trusts and corporate governance. He recently published articles in two professional journals, made several presentations and has six working papers or works in progress.

“My primary interests for research are in real estate and investments as they relate to taxes,” said Hurst, who earned an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of North Carolina. “Investments and the market have always been a passion of mine.”

Hurst and his fiancée have two dogs, and he enjoys playing golf, reading and traveling. Also, he said, “I’m a bit of a foodie.”

Giovanni Fernandez

Fernandez will teach Basic Finance, Advanced Financial Management and Statistics, but he has numerous areas of teaching interest, including the “exciting field” of sports finance. Research interests include bankruptcy, mutual fund performance and microstructure.

“The literature on mutual fund performance is extensive, but many questions are still left unanswered, and mutual funds make up a large portion of most people’s investments,” he said. “I also enjoy research on bankruptcy prediction.”

His FIU undergraduate degree is in Finance, and he has instructed there in Financial Management classes since 2010. Before that, he was a teaching assistant for three years. Fernandez presented a conference paper on mutual fund performance last year and has numerous working papers and works in progress.

Fernandez is a first-generation Cuban American who enjoys travel, “a good cigar,” exercising and eating out at different restaurants. The latter two “don’t sound like they mix, but one compensates for the other. And I love the Food Network, but I can count on one hand how many times I’ve cooked.”

Beaming members of the capstone MBA course, Strategic Management, pose with their photographer client, Bruce Fogleman, seated at right. Behind and to the right of Fogleman in the striped sweater, is the class’s teacher, Peggy Stahl. Holding a dog is Kimberly James, the studio’s operations director, and beside her, seated on the left, is Dr. Fred Augustine, director of Graduate Business Programs.

Teamwork.

It’s part of every student’s experience in virtually every Stetson University School of Business Administration class.

That is the main reason MBA students functioned like a well-oiled machine when Peggy Stahl’s Management Strategy class turned its attention to helping an established local business, Fogleman Studio of DeLand.

“At this point in our academic careers, teamwork doesn’t phase us,” said Jessica Stark, an MBA Program student. “We know what it takes to get ourselves together, how to manage a group no matter the size, utilize strengths of each person and get the job done.”

The “job” in this case was to step out of the capstone class into the world beyond campus and create a real-life strategic management plan for a local business, one that would have cost many thousands of dollars. It seemed daunting, some said, but their years of training kicked in automatically.

“Learning to work well with a diverse group is probably one of the most important business skills one can learn from any graduate or undergraduate program,” said Tim Foli, a portfolio manager associate with U.S. Trust in Orlando.

The biggest challenge, he thought, was gathering and organizing essential information. His classmate Kathy Hannon, also of DeLand, thought the real challenge was assembling the final report.

But both agreed that teamwork is a skill they’ll use repeatedly in their careers.

“Working collaboratively on projects such as this prepares students for what they’ll encounter in the professional environment – no matter what job or career path,” said Hannon, assistant director of Graduate Business Programs.

“Everyone had something to bring to the table,” said Ketsia Samedy of Deltona. “Everyone played a part.”

Students quickly zeroed in on the business’ strengths: 40 years of good will in DeLand, Central Florida’s largest studio, a family business and a “long-standing legacy in the community – an invaluable asset,” said Elizabeth Martin, a Heathrow resident who works for Pershing LLC.

The business’ proximity to Stetson is an asset for it and for students. Fogleman has a long relationship with Stetson University and, because of this project, an intern program was born: Stark is interning with the studio to help implement the plan.

“Working with this team went so smoothly,” said Stark, “that after we made the presentation to the client, and debriefed, not one of us had anything to say other than this went very, very well.”

“Very, very well” from the client’s perspective, too, and Stahl’s.

“We were very satisfied,” said Kimberly James, Fogleman Studio’s director of operations, speaking for herself and Photographer Bruce Fogleman, who gave every student free professional photos.

“The consulting team was incredibly cohesive,” said Stahl, a visiting lecturer in Management and International Business. “I was impressed with the quality of their work.”

James went even further. If she were grading the students, she said, they would get 100 percent on the management plan. Implementation has already begun, she said, and expects business to improve because of it.

A high-tech car wash connected to social media and tuned to customer preferences data won the EMBA Cohort 8’s Best Business Plan Award for Wesley Dubose, Larry Flory and Jason Plas, who was also named “Best Student Overall.”

Another group of MBA students also used teamwork skills to produce ready-to-implement business plans in the capstone course of the Executive MBA Program based at Stetson’s Center at Celebration, Florida.

Five teams of Cohort 8’s 15 students created business plans ranging from food to education to entertainment, but Wesley DuBose of Salt Springs, Larry Flory of Orlando, and Jason Plas of Davenport, took top honors with “Wash Works.” Their plan would incorporate social media to customize service by preferences in a technologically advanced business with an “extraordinary focus on positive experiences in an appealing atmosphere.”

The award was presented in a ceremony at Stetson University’s Center at Celebration campus when coursework was complete in March. Plas was also named the cohort’s “Best Student Overall.”

The major gifts come from the estates of C. Emory and Jeanne Smith, longtime friends of the university who lived in Orlando. Although the Smiths did not attend Stetson, their niece, Norma Jean Prevatt, was a student at the university for a time in the 1950s.

C. Emory Smith was originally from Seville, Fla., and Jeanne Smith was from the Holopaw/St. Cloud area. During their professional careers, Emory established and eventually sold a successful dry cleaning business in Orlando, and Jeanne worked in the health care industry, continuing as a hospital auxiliary volunteer after retirement. They invested in the stock market and some real estate.

“They worked hard and lived modestly, and their philanthropy benefited a number of charities over the years,” said Kate Pearce, director of Gift Planning at Stetson.

The Smiths directed a significant portion of their estates to support students who might not otherwise have the financial resources to attend Stetson. Working with their professional advisors, Emory and Jeanne each established a charitable remainder trust. Emory’s trust was designated for a permanent scholarship to benefit business majors, and Jeanne’s trust established a permanent scholarship for students preparing for careers in health care.

Emory passed away in 2009; his legacy lives on through the Charles Emory and Jeanne C. Smith Scholarship for business majors, which was funded with more than $4 million from his charitable trust. Jeanne passed away in 2011, and her trust has recently distributed $1.5 million to establish the Jeanne C. Smith and C. Emory Smith Endowed Medical Education Fund at Stetson.

The gifts have been invested and a board of trustees-approved portion of the earnings will be used for scholarships each year. Some of the awards will start this fall semester, and the remainder will begin in fall 2013.

“Through their generous philanthropy, Emory and Jeanne Smith established a meaningful legacy that will provide significant resources to countless Stetson students for generations to come,” Pearce said.

Stetson has a program – the Stetson Society – through which the university recognizes those individuals who have provided for its financial future through their estate plan or by establishing a permanent endowed fund. Stetson Society members establish meaningful legacies through their loyal and dedicated support. More information about the Stetson Society is available online at: http://www.stetson.edu/administration/plannedgiving/stetsociety.php.

The Demilitarized Zone was one of the highlights of the trip to Korea for the group shown here at a site for visitors: Dr. Gary Oliphant, Jessica Stark, Xixi West, Reatha Johnson, Sarah Roudis, Elise Ketcham, Laura Mayor, Kathryn Donley, Geoffrey Bride, Jacob Cash, Seth Brewer.

Jessica Stark and Elise Ketcham flank a guard in traditional uniform at the Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, first built in 1394 for the king’s residence.

Two military landmarks dominate Stetson University business students’ descriptions of their journey halfway around the planet to absorb insights into Asian economies, as well as historical and cultural perspectives.

Graduate students visited one Communist country, China, and from South Korea, peered into North Korea, another Communist country.

While in China in early March, they climbed the Great Wall, as have several Business School groups in years past. But the group led by Dr. Gary Oliphant also became the first to stand on the edge of South Korea and gaze across the Demilitarized Zone into the hazy blue hills of North Korea four kilometers away.

Those two world-famous military barriers, the ancient wall and the modern DMZ, made deep impressions. Early walls were built more than 2,000 years ago, but most of the wall today was reconstructed in the 14^th century. The DMZ was established in 1953 as a fortified barrier between North and South Korea.

Students warm up with Tai Chi exercise on a chilly morning in the plaza of the National Indoor Auditorium, built for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

“I was a little nervous about going to the DMZ, but it was great,” said Laura Mayor, a manufacturing engineer who lives in Altamonte Springs, Fla. “Now I think to myself, ‘Wow, I was there.’” The Great Wall topped the DMZ experience, she said. “It was awesome. I wish it was closer so I could go back and walk farther.”

“It was interesting to experience firsthand the Demilitarized Zone, a place that you hear about on the news almost every day,” said Winter Garden, Fla., resident Seth Brewer, who works with Disney Creative Entertainment. “And it was truly inspirational to visit the Great Wall. You can look at thousands of pictures, but it’s never going to be as neat as it is when you climb it.

Oliphant said the experience of seeing the wall is unlike any other.

“This was my third trip escorting MBA students to China,” said Oliphant, chairman of the Decision and Information Sciences Department. “Every trip is different because of the dynamics of the group, but one thing is quite consistent – when students first experience the Great Wall.

Reatha Johnson, XiXi West and Seth Brewer pause during a cold walk along the Wall of China.

“They get tears in their eyes. The thrill that comes from being where history was made, and to realize they are experiencing first-hand what was said in their history books when they were kids is very emotional. There is something special about standing where history was made.”

It was certainly emotional for Geoffrey Bride, who works in his family’s business in Ormond Beach: “I was overcome by a sense of awe and contentment that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”

The nine-day trip followed a semester-long course, Business and Culture in China and South Korea. It was taught by Dr. Becky Oliphant, a Marketing professor, International MBA director and wife of Gary Oliphant, who led the Asian trek when Becky could not. She designed the course to give students a working knowledge of marketing strategies in China and South Korea and an appreciation for the countries’ history, especially Seoul and Beijing.

Laura Mayor, Jessica Stark, Elise Ketcham and Jacob Cash rub brass fittings on a Forbidden City gate in Beijing, said to bring good fortune.

Students gained insight into business in those countries every day, but made several business focused visits, including CCTV, China’s predominant state television broadcaster, the American Chamber of Commerce offices in Beijing and Seoul’s Lotte World, the city’s most popular theme park and the world’s largest indoor amusement park.

Talking with American Chamber officials was one of the highlights for Sarah Roudis of Kissimmee because she learned how it helps Americans meet challenges of doing business in China, the world’s fastest-growing economy.

“The world is becoming a smaller place,” said Roudis, a benefits manager for Aon-Hewitt, a global provider of human resource services. “In business, we must be aware of other cultures. Not only how they are similar to our own, but to recognize and respect the differences. I truly feel that global interaction will be the only way to perform business in the future.”

From left, students Jordan Griffith and Matt Evans talk with Edward Jones financial advisors Jeff Ritchey and alumnus Sean Tamm, BBA ’09.

Win-win-win-win.

Students are winners. So are alumni. Employers, professors, staffers and others are, too.

In fact, there are no losers, say School of Business alumni who returned to campus this spring to participate in the Annual Career Expo.

Alumni working at the many booths at the campus career expo say they enjoy chatting with students and about career opportunities. Their companies often recruit excellent interns and staffers at the career fair. Students get a chance to learn about prospective careers that fit their interests and perhaps find out which ones don’t fit their interests. Company and personal relationships with professors, staffers and the university are strengthened by new and renewed contacts made at the fair.

“The career fair is actually where I made my first contact with Edward Jones Investments, my current employer,” said Sean Tamm, BBA ’09, a financial advisor in one of the company’s local offices. “And the career fair is valuable to Edward Jones because Stetson University’s School of Business Administration graduates some of the finest investment students in the nation.

Cheryl Beecee, MBA student from Ormond Beach, talks to Juan Morey Jr., a manager with Consolidated Electrical Distributors in Orlando.

“Many graduates are currently financial advisors for Edward Jones,” Tamm said.

Consolidated Electrical Distributors is a winner because it has hired several Business School graduates in recent years, said Juan Morey Jr., BBA ’92 as he fielded students’ questions about his company. “I am very aware of the caliber of candidates that Stetson has to offer,” said the CED manager. “Every time we hire someone from Stetson, I know that my company will benefit greatly down the road.”

His company has had a long relationship with Stetson and the Career Development office and recently established a fund to provide merit-based scholarship for internships for business students.

More than 200 students attended this year’s Career Expo, said Robin Kazmarek, Career Development director. Two campus-wide fairs are held each year in addition to dozens of individual company visits for students. Career Development’s many contacts with students through various presentations and sessions number in the thousands.

“It’s an excellent opportunity for students and employers and recruiters to begin the networking process, to open many doors for the future,” she said, even if students aren’t targeting a specific field or activity. “It’s a chance for them to be exposed to a wide variety of industries and recruiters, from nonprofit to traditional businesses to the arts and to explore a myriad of resources and positions.”

There is value in attending the fair even if a student isn’t focused on specific opportunities, several business graduates said, because it’s a chance to find out what kinds of career opportunities are out there and to practice interview and other job-seeking skills.

Business School alumnus Michael Grebosz talked to students at the Career Fair.

“If nothing more, it is an experience tool for students to learn how to interact with employers,” said Michael Grebosz, BBA ’05, MBA ’07. “It almost compares to a sort of a speed-date type of mini-job interview sessions.”

Grebosz never attended a career fair while a business student. But that’s not the best way to do it, said the assistant to DeLand’s city manager who worked in a Career Expo booth for the Florida City and County Managers Association. Numerous Business School graduates work for the City of DeLand, he said, and for many other Florida governments.

“Knowing what I know now, the career fair is something that every student should participate in no matter if you have something lined up or not,” he said. “It is a great experience to hone your interactions with potential employers.”

Some business alumni working at the fair visit other schools, too, but returning to their Alma Mater is special.

It’s personal for Morey: “Returning to Stetson as a recruiter brings me great satisfaction. The skills I honed here are a very large contributing reason I have reached the places in my professional life and in my personal life, too.”

It’s both personal and professional for Tommi Flanary, MBA ’11.

“Faculty and staff are wonderful, and the students are great,” said the senior financial analyst for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “It’s a personal benefit to be able to keep my relationship with the university, and good for my company to continue to recruit from a strong business school.”

Marketing Chair and Professor Michelle DeMoss receives a standing ovation upon being named 2012 Professor of the Year for the School of Business Administration. Presenting the award were Assistant Professor of Accounting Maria Rickling and Dean Stuart Michelson.

A 22-year veteran Marketing professor who is always ready to serve her colleagues, students and school is the 2012 Professor of the Year for the School of Business Administration.

Amid great applause, Dr. Michelle DeMoss received a standing ovation when Dr. Stuart Michelson, Business School dean, named her recipient of the coveted award.

“She is a key player in the School of Business Administration,” Michelson said. “She is someone all of us, especially the dean, can depend on to help further the goals of the Business School.

“She never says no,” said Michelson, who makes the decision on the award for top professor.

DeMoss, who came to the Business School in 1990, also received the Award for Outstanding Service, one of three awards bestowed by her colleagues. Dr. Greg McCann received the Innovator Award and Dr. Shahram Amiri received the Award for Outstanding Research.

The Outstanding Teacher Award is presented to Professor of Decision and Information Sciences Betty Thorne by Dean Stuart Michelson and Assistant Professor of Accounting Maria Rickling.

Student nominations determine a fourth annual award, the Outstanding Teacher Award, which went to Dr. Betty Thorne, who teaches many statistics courses in the Department of Decision and Information Sciences. She came to the Business School in 1980.

“Dr. Thorne is one of the best teachers I’ve ever had, in any subject,” Michelson read from a student nomination to the crowd of top students, faculty, alumni and friends. “She won’t let you – and you can’t – fall behind in her class.”

One nomination said Thorne’s self-described goal is “for my students to learn, to learn how to learn and to develop a desire for life-long learning.” She is director of undergraduate studies.

DeMoss stepped into the chair of the Marketing Department last year after taking on major duties as a leader in the successful effort to renew accreditation by AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, Michelson told the group.

She serves the university and the Business School on curriculum committees, is on Stetson’s Environmental Responsibility Council and recently co-chaired the search committee for a new School of Business dean.

Family Enterprise Center Director and Professor Greg McCann receives the Innovator Award from Dean Stuart Michelson and Assistant Professor of Accounting Maria Rickling.

McCann, who came to Stetson in 1990, earned the Innovator Award, primarily for his work in the field of Family Enterprise where he developed the nation’s first major in that field and has forged a strong partnership with Family Business Magazine.

The Outstanding Research Award went to Amiri, who has created a body of research and published in numerous academic journal, made presentations and other intellectual contributions. In 2011 alone, Amiri, who came to Stetson in 1996, published four peer-reviewed journal articles.

Members of this year’s faculty awards committee were Dr. Scott Jones of the Marketing Department and Dr. Maria Rickling of the Accounting Department.

Fred Lane, left, and Greg McCann, right, present the Business School Foundation Merit Award for Family Business to senior Olivia Stevens.

More than $100,000 in scholarships and monetary awards were bestowed on scores of students at the annual School of Business Administration Honors Banquet this spring where faculty, family and friends applauded the achievements of top business scholars.

Some 80 graduate and undergraduate students were also recognized for being among the school’s highest academic achievers and as 2011-’12 inductees of Beta Gamma Sigma, the business honorary society.

“You are the best of the best,” said Dr. Stuart Michelson, dean of the school. “You are our future leaders, and I am very proud of you.”

The evening was also marked by recognition of faculty and supporters of the school. The spotlight, however, was on students. Chairs and professors of each department presented awards to students as Michelson read achievements and personal aspirations of each of the honorees between long waves of applause. Speaking especially to those who will soon graduate, the dean advised them to take this time of their lives to travel the world, be an ambassador for Stetson and to invest in humanity by doing good deeds.

“If you will pay it forward, I think it pays dividends and makes the world a better place,” he challenged.

The Business School Foundation hosted the event and funded a fourth of the 68 monetary awards, more than any other source. The largest single source of funds for scholarships was from endowments supporting the five Joseph J. Master Life Challenger Awards. It is named for a renowned professor who died in 2008 and endowed by gifts from Master, his family, alumni, faculty, friends, family and admirers.

The prestigious Master Accountant Award is presented to alumnus and CPA George Shierling by Accounting Professor Michael Bitter and Accounting Professor Emeritus Paul Dascher.

The prestigious Master Accountant Award, also honoring Joseph Master, was presented to George E. Shierling, BBA ’70, a DeLand CPA who has been a loyal and vigorous supporter of Stetson’s Business School for more than four decades. He is president of the Business School Foundation.

“You have led your firm, the Florida Institute of CPAs and the Stetson School of Business Foundation with a focus on helping others achieve professional success,” Michelson said of Shierling as Dr. Michael Bitter, chair of the Accounting Department, presented the award. Shierling demonstrates a “clear and ongoing ethical commitment” to government, clients, colleagues and students.

“These qualities reflect attributes we would like to instill in all our students,” said Michelson. “By recognizing you, we provide students with a contemporary example for them to emulate in their professional careers.”

Outside entities such as the Florida Board of Accountancy, Financial Executives International, the Florida Institute of CPA Educational Endowment and others accounted for almost a quarter of the monetary awards and scholarships given to students.

Students and four Business School advisors were inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma international honor society.

Induction into Beta Gamma Sigma was done in a ceremony before the banquet. Students inducted into the international society must rank in the upper 10 percent of their undergraduate class or upper 20 percent for graduate students.

In addition, four non-students were inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma. They were nominated as honorary inductees by Dean Michelson for their service to the School of Business, the university and their profession. All are or have been advisors to the Business School. They are Stephen Alexander, Geoffrey Jollay, Fred Lane and John Scheurer.

Alexander, BBA ’85, was an examiner in securities and investment fraud for Florida;s Comptroller and for 10 years was Orange County’s treasury manager before joining PFM Asset Management to administer investment advisory and treasury management in the Southeast.

Jollay, BBA ’75, is the retired chairman and CEO of CorrChoice Corporation who served as chair of the Family Enterprise Center Board of Advisors before being elected to Stetson’s Board of Trustees in 2008.

Lane, BA ’52, met his wife at Stetson and after a career in church leadership, they began a successful family business in 1968 and became two of Stetson’s biggest benefactors.

Scheurer, BBA ’75, a founder and manager of finance and real estate corporations for 35 years, developed restructuring strategies for troubled businesses and served on boards of real estate and mortgage associations.

The annual honors banquet is one of numerous ways the Business School Foundation, an independent nonprofit corporation, supports the school. It was founded in 1969 for a single purpose: the promotion and support of the study of business administration. Prudent investments by the Foundation have helped generate millions of dollars to further its mission. Many hundreds of students have received scholarships and hundreds of grants have been given to faculty members for research and study.

“The Foundation has had a profound impact not only on the quality of the Business School, but also on the entire Stetson community,” said Accounting Professor Jud Stryker, treasurer and Foundation member for some 25 years. The higher tide created by the Foundation’s support raises all aspects of Stetson’s quality, he said.

Students inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma were Al Allen, Abdulmohsen Ahmed Alrufaihi, Kristi Anderson, Jan Anguel, Eva Marie Balch, Lofton E. Barnes Jr., Sebastian Behnke, Brian Belisle, Gregory Jules Blech, Norbert Bobay III, Bryan Scott Boyd, Mitchel S. Brennan, David J. Bronson, Richard T. Butcher, Matthew J. Buttner, Coral Cass, Geraldine Danforth, Daniel Davis, Christopher Donegan, Chad Ducote, Denise Ann Edelmaier, Laurie Allisen Ehresman, Lauren Farmer, Joseph Fisher Jr., Tommi Merie Flanary, Larry Flory, Kirsten Ann George, Jorge Gonzalez, Tatiana Gorbach, Ashley L. Graham, Erik Halaj, Kathryn A. Hannon, Bonnie Harper, Shannon Harrell, Deborah J. Hayden, Luz C. Hernandez, Rachael M. Isaacson, Shariq Khan, Suzanne Lopez, Kathrine Lupo, Alexandra Mandell, Ksenia A. Marchenkova, Elizabeth Martin, Eileen Maxwell, James Mennen, Anne Frances Mitchell, Sarah Moran, Brian Richard Nash, Harold Stuart Newton, Yulia Nikulina, Amanda Nix, James Nix, Kara Marie Oldford, Eric J. O’Leary, Lisa Ontiveros, Stephanie Newell Parsons, Ashley Nicole Perryman, Scott Andrew Peterson, Jason Charles Plas, Kelly Poropat, Brenda Tanner Redfern, Brian Reif, McNoia Vivienne Roberts, Christian Roeder, Sarah Roudis, Yuwen Ruan, Hasan Ibrahim Sayed, Alina Kim Siegrist, Rebecca Ann Sluss, Kristina Marie Sommer, Garrett Lee Spellacy, Douglas Steelman, Njal Stene, Jennifer Stone, Bogdana Subachev Sichko, Brandon Szymula, Juliana Alvarez Trujillo, Daniela Wallroff, Ryan Wehner, Gary J. Witosky and Jinzixing Yuan.

Students who received awards at the banquet included:

Business School Foundation Graduate Assistant Award – Ryan Kirby and Karolina Nowak

Business School Foundation Graduate Scholarship – Michael Larweth, Bernard LeFils and Marketa Nickle

Accenture Scholar Award – Shaun Tracey

Business School Foundation Kenneth Jackson Award for Decision Science – Lisa Ontiveros

Business School Foundation Merit Award for Management Information Systems – Ashley Artibee

Business School Foundation Merit Award for General Business – Kirsten George

Business School Foundation Eugene M. Lynn Merit Award for Finance – Richard Butcher

Roland George Investments Program Merit Scholars – Fall 2011 – Charles Cook, Jason Dark, Jillian Masucci, Stephen Swofford and Jinzixing “Marla” Yuan

Roland George Investments Program Merit Scholars – Spring 2012 – Thomas Angley, Mitchel Brennan, Richard Butcher, Tucker Donahue and Shaun Tracey

FEI Distinguished Studard Award – Kaylyn Varnum

FEI Scholarship – Erik Halaj and Hidi Taylor

Business School Foundation E. C. Furlong Merit Award for Management – Shermiah Lawrence

Business School Foundation Merit Award for International Business – Eva Marie Balch

Business School Foundation Merit Award for the Prince Entrepreneurial Program – Tuyet “Hannah” Nguyen

Monique Forte Memorial Scholarship – Kathryn Jette

Business School Foundation Merit Award for Marketing – Justin Bosco

Kechler Creative Sales Award – Alexander Kempinski

Marketing Research Award – Kara Oldford

Marketing Ethics and Social Responsibility Award – Scarlett McCoy

Outstanding Marketing Senior Award – Matt Delisle

Sport Management Scholarship and Service Award – Kerry Kerlin

Business School Foundation Accounting Tutor Award – Morgan Greene

Business School Foundation Merit Award for Business Law – Kristi Anderson and Patrick Browning

Business School Foundation David M. Beights Merit Award for Accounting – McNoia Roberts and Kaylyn Varnum

Business School Foundation Merit Award for Family Business – Rachael Isaacson and Olivia Stevens

Family Enterprise Program Adam Mullen Award – Alyssa Thompson

Federation of Schools Accountancy – Shin Liu

Florida Board of Accountancy Minority Scholarship – Christine Saarinen and Aini Stephens

Florida Institute of CPAs Education Foundation, Inc. Accounting Award – Thomas Baumer, Morgan Greene and Jennifer Rinaberger

FICPA Robert R. Harris Scholarship Award – Michael Larweth

FICPA George E. Shierling Platinum Endowment Scholarship Award – Kaylyn Varnum

Master Life Challenger Award – Thomas Baumer, Brad Brubaker, Morgan Greene, Jennifer Rinaberger, Alyssa Thompson and Christine Saarinen

J. Stephen and Marybeth Pullum Scholarship Award – Katherine Meltzer

George Putnam Accounting Award – Hidi Taylor

Beta Alpha Psi Scholarship Award – Daniel Glerum, Chris Hyma, Azshea Lambert, Colleen Punzalan, Tiffany Shaffer, Ricky Souza and Aini Stephens

Beta Gamma Sigma Scholarship Award – Kathryn Jette

Business School Foundation Paul E. Dascher Outstanding Scholar Award – Jillian Masucci

J.D. Bond and Charles E. Bradley Award – Amanda Nix and Garrett Spellacy

Thomas R. Horton Award in Business Award – Richard Butcher

The field study group pauses near the Plaza Vieja in Havana. Left to right, they are Betty Gonzalez, Dr. William Andrews, Kursten Lizarraga, Jimmie Lopez, Jose Velez, Jarian Martinez, Dr. Chris Tobler, Michaela Kearney, Michael Lyons, Marjorie Fischer and Alisa Ring.

Students returning from international field studies invariably find they have acquired an invisible keepsake of great power – perspective.

Fresh perspective is something mentioned by nearly every student describing their Business School class trip to Communist Cuba in early March where they gained new and broader understanding of life on the island nation.

Jimmie Lopez at the National Capitol in Havana.

Those insights are denied most Americans because of many things, students say, including travel restrictions, propaganda, stereotypical thinking and indifference.

“It’s one thing to read about issues in the world, but to experience them first-hand allowed me to dissolve preconceptions of issues in Cuba,” said Jimmie Lopez, a junior Finance major from Boston. “Now that I’ve been there and have a real perspective, I question what I’ve been told and now shape my notions on facts and my experience.”

“The biggest insight I gained,” said junior Betty Gonzalez, “is the power of perspective and how easy it is for the same thing to be called different things by different people, and in this case, different countries.

Betty Gonzalez bought a painting of cigar-smoking U.S. President John F. Kennedy by bearded artist Jose Maestrey Zequeira at the Taller-Estudio Cojimarte Gallery in Cojimar.

“What we call a dictatorship, Cuba calls a democracy with a single socialist party,” said Gonzalez, an International Business major from Port Orange. “What we call nation-building, Cuba calls imperialism. What we call an economic embargo, Cuba calls an economic blockade.”

There is a real and obvious disconnect between the citizens and governments of the two countries because of Cold War bias, lack of open communications and flow of commerce and information, students said. The United States imposed an embargo on Cuba in 1960 and broke diplomatic relations in 1961.

Students described seeing cities of unpainted, crumbling buildings, unreliable and obsolete transportation, sparse merchandise and basic products, no potable water, spotty or absent electricity, and citizens who live in a subsistence economy. They encountered many aggressive “hunger-driven” panhandlers and street sellers hustling to make a deal during their week in Havana and the Cienfuegos/Trinidad area.

Some of the most personally emotional moments of the trip were experienced by Jose Velez, a junior majoring in Integrative Health Science, who is half-Cuban/half-Puerto Rican. The trip provided an opportunity for Velez to meet relatives and see where his grandparents once lived and worked – it was the first time anyone in his family had returned to Cuba in 50 years.

“The opportunity to converse, as well as record, a great deal of the conversations regarding my family history, as well as the opportunity to bring back messages to our family outside of the country was beyond anything I could have imagined,” said Velez, whose full story of the experience will be chronicled in an upcoming edition of SU Magazine.

The trip was preceded by several months of comprehensive study of Cuba in a class taught by Professor William Andrews, who accompanied students on the trip, his third to the island nation. In Cuba, the group met with pro- and anti-regime representatives. One purpose of the trip was to get students past the passionate political arguments and propaganda to allow development of their independent opinions.

Billboards in Cuba sell ideas, not products. Most messages are pro-socialism, anti-embargo or quotes from national heroes such as Jose Marti, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. This one speaks to the United States economic embargo, referred to as the blockade by Cubans. It says "Liberty cannot be blocked" in red text and in smaller text, it says "There is no fear here."

“I’ve never seen a more polemicized society as Cuba,” said Andrews, who chairs the Management and International Business Department. “There is so much vitriol.” The highlight of the trip, and the entire course, was “the growth in the students’ capacity to think independently and factually about an important issue that has passionate advocates on both sides.”

The disconnect of attitudes and understanding is changing, said Gonzalez, partly because new generations with less bias and because, despite difficult government relations, exchange of travel and information is increasing. Current government policies, said Lopez, are not only outdated, but harm innocent people.

“Cuba will become a very important trading partner for Florida in the not-too-distant future,” said Andrews, who hopes to continue field studies and expand established relationships “in an effort to support their movement toward a more market-oriented economy.”