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UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS

Dr. Shannon Davis, now associate dean for undergraduate programs at NC State University’s Poole College of Management, was part of the initial cohort of new faculty joining the college soon after it was created in 1992. They brought a fresh perspective on how business topics would be taught at NC State.

“The university had been teaching business and accounting from the humanities and theoretical perspective rather than corporate and applied,” Davis said. “We were the first faculty to have business training and corporate experience, and were charged with developing an applied business management curriculum.”

Davis’s specialization was in human resources, but the college at the time had no courses on staffing, training, or employee development, so one of the first new courses she developed and taught was the fundamentals in those areas, as well as a graduate level ‘managing people’ course.

“These were our first steps to integrate human resources and organizational behavior into the curriculum,” she said. Dr. Steve Markham, another of the new cohort, focused on organizational behavior and the impact and management of technology in the organization.

Dr. Steve Chapman and Dr. Cecil Bozarth, who also joined the college that same year, developed new courses in what is now the supply chain management concentration in Poole College’s undergraduate and MBA programs. The shift in focus reflects what was happening in business and industry, where the discipline had broadened to include logistics, purchasing and other aspects of the full supply chain.

Together, the four professors created the basic courses in what is now the core undergraduate business management curriculum. “That core now includes accounting, business ethics, economics, finance, human resources, information systems, management, marketing, operations management, statistics, strategy, the legal environment of business, and capstone classes in which students tie it all together through real world projects,” Davis said. In addition, students take a similar number of courses to meet the university’s general education requirements.

The curriculum is continually being reviewed by the lead faculty in each discipline, department heads and the college’s administrative team, to assure that it is relevant to current business practices and needs and incorporates improvements in instructional technology and pedagogy. To manage these processes administratively, Andrew Nowel, an alumnus of the college and long-time member of the undergraduate programs’ advising team, now serves as director of curriculum, scheduling and assessment. He also continues as a lecturer in economics.

PROFESSIONAL ADVISING

Similarly, the college’s approach to undergraduate advising has been updated to a professional advising model. “Each professor used to be assigned 60 to 80 students as advisees, who could be in any discipline and at any stage in their academic programs,” Davis said, so the professors needed to stay current with changes in academic policies for all the degree programs. “This was taking a lot of faculty time without providing good service to the students,” Davis said.

When she was named associate dean for undergraduate programs, Davis drew on her background in human resources and proposed a professional advising model. The dean was receptive, and the college’s Office of Undergraduate Programs now is staffed with six professional advisors whose advanced degrees in student development and educational administration prepare them to apply a developmental approach in their roles.

“In this model, the advisor’s role is to provide the information needed to help students make successful progress toward their degree,” Davis said. Having staff with both academic advising and developmental knowledge is vital, given the college’s complex undergraduate student body, which includes first-year students, transfer students, full time and part time students, and many who are also juggling employment and international study with their coursework.

“Our students are all at different stages of their academic and personal development, so it was important to incorporate the developmental aspect into our advising,” she said. “The advisors can provide knowledge and resources that give the students a foundation from which they can become more self-directed in their academic choices and assume responsibility for their own success.”

ENCOURAGING INVOLVEMENT

A key part of the college experience is learning about one’s self and other people. To help with that, the college’s undergraduate advising team encourages students to get involved in student organizations – professional, service, social, honorary – that are based in the college or across campus.

Incoming students get a jump start on the process through the college’s Professionalism, Diversity & Academic Success in Management (M100) course that all first year and transfer students take. It includes several modules, one of which is Student Network Groups (SNG). Students self-select into one of these groups for discussion and activities related to the group’s demographic focus: women, men, African American, military, part-time students, Asian, GLBT, first-generation at college, and others.

“The students decide if they would like to join a group that they affiliate with, to discuss topics with others in that same group, or to join another group if they would like to learn more about others in another demographic,” said Dr. Lauren Brown, associate director of undergraduate advising, who leads the SNG program.

Each SNG has at least one professional mentor who also self-identifies with that group and is available as a resource for discussions and activities, such as attending cultural events together or making a site visit to the mentor’s place of business for workplace discussions. This program is modeled after similar network or affinity groups common in the corporate environment. The professional mentors are paired with Poole College undergraduate students who have already completed the course and volunteer to serve as SNG student mentors.

The SNGs are one example of how awareness and respect for diversity and inclusion are integrated throughout the curriculum. Through the network groups, advising sessions and college-wide communications, students, faculty and staff are kept informed of opportunities to learn about others.

In the past year, two SNG student mentors received Diversity Peer Educator Scholarships awarded by Target Corporation. As a Diversity Peer Educator, the award recipients engage in a variety of activities throughout the academic year including meetings and workshops, roundtable discussions, presentations, and other developmental experiences as identified by the college’s Coordinator of Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives. They also are planning and presenting at least one major diversity-related event for Poole students each semester, and continue their involvement in activities to promote inclusion within NC State University. The 2012-13 Diversity Peer Educators are Abdul Hindi and Chase Johnson.

Students also are encouraged to participate in national conferences related to diversity. The Office of Undergraduate Programs sponsored 10 students to attend the National Black Student Leadership Conference held in Raleigh, N.C. in January 2013. Also in January, accounting junior Alzabeth Roman was selected to attend Ernst & Young’s first Diversity Leadership Conference held in New York City. Over 100 students attended from almost every state in the continental U.S.

Diversity of Student Organizations

The diversity of interests within Poole College is also reflected in the 25-plus student organizations that have been established over the years. This year, Poole undergraduates launched a new Personal Investment Club. The recenty formed Poole Council is now comprised of elected representatives from the student body. “Our goal is to further develop leadership and a deeper sense of community college-wide,” Davis said.

The college’s undergraduate International Business Club (IBC) represents another area of emphasis in the college – international engagement. Robert Sandruck joined the college as director of international programs for the Poole College. He provides logistics and program support for students studying abroad in any of the college’s academic programs. [Read the Going Global part of this report.]

The Poole College Student Ambassadors and Poole College Peer Leaders are two student organizations whose members work closely with the undergraduate programs staff in providing service to the college. The Student Ambassadors are the students who welcome prospective students to informational programs, orientation and other college events such as the Wells Fargo Executive Series, the annual Poole College Homecoming Porch Party and Parade Viewing, and Freshman Welcome Week.

The Peer Leaders work with the advising staff on numerous activities to help first-year students transition from high school to college. They assist during orientation, help with the college’s Professionalism, Diversity & Academic Success in Management (M100) course, invite freshmen to events on campus, organize events and activities to engage freshmen students, and hold ‘office hours’ during which freshmen can ask questions, seek advice and get assistance.

Internships are another area of emphasis for Poole College’s undergraduate students. Brian Newton, director of career development for Poole’s undergraduate students; Dr. Janet Rakes, career counselor; and their graduate assistants offer a dynamic schedule of workshops each semester to prepare students for the college’s fall and spring career fairs, as well as individual practice for internships and jobs, information sessions and resume critiques by corporate recruiters Nelson Hall.

In spring 2013, they will introduce the first Poole College ‘Elevator Speech’ competition, with employers serving as judges. The final round of the competition will be held at NC State’s Vaughn Towers at the Carter-Finley Stadium on April 11.

Newton also has developed a student career manual that includes correspondence samples and tips for navigating the steps to launch one’s career. His team also established a professional clothing closet to provide, on loan, business attire for students needing assistance for interviews and career fairs. Donations of professional attire are accepted throughout the year. Information for recruiters is available on the Poole College website. 

New Students

“We look forward to welcoming our new freshmen and transfer students to Poole later this year,” Davis said. “Prospective students can get introduced to Poole College through informal Friday information sessions, the college’s Make-a-Date With State program held several Saturdays in the first quarter of each year, and other opportunities provided by the college’s student recruitment office. They also have a chance to talk with current students during follow-up phone calls, and each receives a personal note from our one of our Student Ambassadors.” 

Bonnie Yarboro, assistant director of admissions and a Poole College alumna ('07, B.S., business administration), coordinates the college’s recruitment activities, in collaboration with the university’s admissions office and Erin Dixon, director of Poole College’s undergraduate programs.