Poole College of Management has awarded $45,300 in high-impact experience (HIE) mini grants to faculty, staff, and community partners whose innovative proposals will expand and enhance experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate students.

High-impact experiences are immersive, sustained learning opportunities that allow students to apply knowledge in real-world contexts while engaging in structured reflection and professional skill development. Through HIEs, Poole students deepen their learning both in and beyond the classroom, connect academic concepts to personal and career goals, and build the career-readiness skills most valued by employers. 

The HIE mini grant program supports initiatives that elevate existing activities into HIEs, expand access to current HIEs, or create new experiential opportunities that contribute to a comprehensive co-curricular experience. Proposals were evaluated based on alignment with the Poole High-Impact Experience Quality Rubric, creativity and innovation, breadth and reach, and commitment to NC State’s “Think and Do” philosophy.

This year’s HIE mini-grants were made possible through generous donations to Poole College High-Impact Experience Fund.

“We received 15 proposals for our inaugural RFP process, which far surpassed my expectations,” said Tyler Wiersma, director of high-impact experiences. “This level of interest shows how committed our faculty and staff are to delivering high-impact experiences that prime our students for success.”

Faculty were notified of their awards during the first week of December and have until June 2027 to utilize the funds. Collectively, the awarded initiatives span practicum projects, community service, sustainability, study abroad preparation and undergraduate research, significantly broadening the range of high-impact opportunities available to Poole students.

HIE Mini Grant Awardees

Accounting Nonprofit Practicum
Mary Newman
This 3-credit-hour undergraduate course pairs student teams with nonprofit organizations across North Carolina to address real operational challenges. Under faculty mentorship, students apply accounting and business knowledge to develop data-driven solutions related to financial management, strategic planning, operation efficiency and organizational sustainability.

Future Business Sustainability Leaders Summer HIE
Jessica Yinka Thomas & Rachel Haynes
This initiative builds on Poole’s existing sustainability offerings by creating a co-curricular, summer-based high-impact experience focused on business sustainability. The program will inform the development of a future elective HIE practicum course and provide students with applied, real-world exposure to sustainability challenges and solutions. 

Undergraduate Academic Research Project
Rob Whited
Students will participate in a semester-long research experience in which they design and execute an original academic research project aligned with their interests. Guided by a faculty mentor, students will draw on concepts from the Undergraduate Business Research course and present their findings at the Undergraduate Research Symposium.

College Labor Market Annual Report
Allison Lowe-Reed
This project will produce a new economic data report focused on the regional labor market for college graduates. Students will work in teams alongside professional economists and faculty to collect, analyze and interpret labor market data, gaining hands-on experience with applied economic research and data storytelling.

From Pre-Launch to Launch: A Practicum-Based Approach and Hybrid Joint Program
Haley Huie
In partnership with Flourish in Growth, this pilot program supports Poole students in the post-idea, pre-launch stage of venture development. Students will be paired with experienced industry mentors and guided through a pop-up business launch while documenting their process as both individual ventures and a cohort, blending applied entrepreneurship with evidence-based inquiry.

Together, these faculty-led initiatives strengthen Poole College’s commitment to experiential learning and ensure that students have meaningful opportunities to think, do, reflect and grow throughout their undergraduate journey.