Professor Named Academic Fellow for Federal SEC’s Office of Chief Accountant
 
Mikhail Pevzner. Ph.D.

Mikhail Pevzner, associate professor of accounting in the University of Baltimore’s Merrick School of Business and Program Director of Merrick’s Master in Accounting and Business Advisory Services program, has been appointed an Academic Accounting Fellow for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Chief Accountant. He will serve in this role in the SEC’s Washington, D.C. offices beginning this August and continuing for one year.


Mikhail Pevzner, associate professor of accounting in the University of Baltimore’s Merrick School of Business and Program Director of Merrick’s Master in Accounting and Business Advisory Services program, has been appointed an Academic Accounting Fellow for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Chief Accountant. He will serve in this role in the SEC’s Washington, D.C. offices beginning this August and continuing for one year.

The Office of the Chief Accountant acts as the primary adviser to the SEC on auditing and accounting matters. Academic Accounting Fellows serve as research resources for SEC staff by interpreting and communicating research materials as they relate to the agency.

The fellows have been assigned to ongoing projects in the Chief Accountant’s office including rulemaking, monitoring the developments of the accounting and auditing standards-setting bodies, and consulting with registrants on accounting, auditing, independence and reporting matters.

“There is one word that describes Mikhail: engaged,” said Murray Dalziel, dean of the Merrick School of Business. “He is involved with students; involved with the profession and involved in some of the highest level thought leadership in accounting today. We are fortunate to have such a dedicated professor.

Pevzner says he is deeply honored that the SEC has selected him to be one of the two visiting academic fellows during the upcoming academic year.

“I sincerely hope that my academic expertise in auditing and financial reporting will help the SEC in their very important mission of ensuring the effective regulatory oversight of the U.S. capital markets,” said Pevzner. “I want to express my deep thanks to everyone within and outside UB for their support in my pursuit of this highly prestigious fellowship. I am very hopeful that the knowledge I will gain from working at the SEC will greatly benefit UB students and my faculty colleagues upon my return to teaching.

Pevzner earned a bachelor’s in business administration with a focus in accounting from the University of Minnesota. He earned Ph.D. in Business Administration with concentration in Accounting from Washington University in St. Louis and is a licensed CPA in Maryland and Minnesota. Pevzner is a member of the American Accounting Association and the Maryland Association of CPAs. He holds the Merrick School’s EY Chair in Accounting and its Yale Gordon Chair in Distinguished Teaching. He also serves as academic director for the M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory program.

Pevzner recently was awarded the school’s Black & Decker Outstanding Article award for a co-authored paper entitled “When Firms Talk, Do Investors Listen? The Role of Trust in Stock Market Reactions to Corporate Earnings Announcements.” The article, co-authored with Profs. Fei Xie of University of Delaware and Xiangang Xin of City University of Hong Kong, was published in July 2015 issue of Journal of Financial Economics.

Learn more about Prof. Pevzner.

Vital Signs 14 Provides Data Tracking Quality of Life in Baltimore's Neighborhoods
 
Cover of VItal Signs Report

Vital Signs 14, a comprehensive statistical portrait of Baltimore and its neighborhoods, marks 14 years of continuous monitoring of community-based quality of life indicators. The 13th edition of the report, published by the Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance-Jacob France Institute (BNIA-JFI), tracks more than 100 indicators that "take the pulse" of neighborhood health and vitality. The report, along with new indicators and several data visualization aides, is available now on BNIA-JFI's updated website.


Vital Signs 14, a comprehensive statistical portrait of Baltimore and its neighborhoods, marks 14 years of continuous monitoring of community-based quality of life indicators. The latest edition of the report, published by the Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance-Jacob France Institute (BNIA-JFI), tracks more than 100 indicators that "take the pulse" of neighborhood health and vitality. The report, along with new indicators and several data visualization aides, is available now on BNIA-JFI's updated website.

Seema D. Iyer, associate director of the Jacob France Institute in the University of Baltimore's Merrick School of Business, said the release of Vital Signs 14 is more relevant than ever as neighborhoods try to manage change and the City of Baltimore tries to address disparities.

"Each one of the indicators on Vital Signs 14 has significant variation across Baltimore's neighborhoods," Iyer added. "For some neighborhoods, the gaps in opportunity can seem intractable. The data in Vital Signs 14 gives a quantifiable voice to local context and can help foster collaborative solutions among everyone seeking to improve the quality of life in every neighborhood."

"Vital Signs 14 provides critical data to all of us engaged in community-based work" says Scot Spencer, who serves on the BNIA-JFI steering committee and is associate director for advocacy and influence at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, which sponsored the report. "These data help us track how effective our efforts are in improving outcomes for families and children in Baltimore."

Vital Signs 14 comprises a well-defined set of both long-standing and newly emerging issues that are important for understanding Baltimore’s unique neighborhoods. Highlights include:

Demand for Rental Units Increasing, Impacting Affordability:

  • Following national trends in other metropolitan areas, the percentage of renter households is increasing in Baltimore. However, rent affordability is a burden for 51.8 percent of Baltimore renter households who pay more than 30 percent of their income on housing costs.
  • Affordability in some neighborhoods is decreasing. For example, Canton has become the neighborhood with the highest percent of households earning $75,000 or more (61.7 percent), with a median home sales price of $275,000 and a rate of housing voucher use of only 16.3 per 1,000 rental units.
  • Between 2013 and 2014, the total number of homes sold in Baltimore City increased by 58.5 percent from 4,935 to 7,822. However, the median sales price of homes sold decreased by 14.1 percent from $147,000 to $126,325.
  • The overall supply of housing in Baltimore today greatly outnumbers current demand. Between 2013 and 2014, the percentage of homes receiving a vacant house notice in Baltimore City increased from 8.0 percent in 2013 to 8.1 percent in 2014. Also, the percent of homes no longer receiving mail from the U.S. Postal Service increased from 7.6 percent to 8.4 percent.

Economy:

Overall economic conditions in Baltimore City continued a slow but gradual recovery with increases in jobs and decreases in unemployment between 2013 and 2014.

  • From 2013 to 2014, the number of jobs filled by employees in Baltimore City increased 2.7 percent, from 335,497 in 2013 to 344,588 in 2014.

New Indicators on Arts and Culture:

Vital Signs 14 includes several new indicators on activities, events, and public art installations that create spaces for community-building in every neighborhood. As Baltimore continues to diversify demographically, these opportunities for social interaction become increasingly important for neighborhood vitality and quality of life.

  • In 2014, there were 1.2 works of public art per 1,000 residents (750 works of public art total) in the City of Baltimore. Of these works, 218 were publically-funded murals.
  • In 2014, there were 1.4 events event permits requested per 1,000 residents for activities such as parades, festivals, block parties, and marathons.

In total, Vital Signs 14 is a compilation of "big data." There are more than 100 indicators for each of Baltimore's 55 community statistical areas, which translate to more than 5,000 data points in the latest edition of the study. The report is also rooted in "open data": All of the indicators, maps and report chapters from Vital Signs are freely accessible online for anyone to use in a variety of innovative ways. BNIA-JFI is currently working with city government to upload Vital Signs data on the OpenBaltimore data portal.

BNIA-JFI also hosted its annual summer workshop, Baltimore Data Day, in which community leaders, nonprofit organizations, governmental entities and civic-minded "hackers" come together to analyze the latest trends in community-based data, technology and tools, and learn how other groups are using data to support and advance constructive change

Vital Signs analyzes data provided at the Community Statistical Area level. CSAs are clusters of neighborhoods organized around census tract boundaries, which are consistent statistical boundaries. Neighborhood borders don't always fall neatly into CSAs, but CSAs represent conditions occurring within the particular neighborhoods that comprise a CSA.

BNIA-JFI began in 1998 as a partnership between the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers. In 2006, BNIA joined with the University of Baltimore's Jacob France Institute in an expansion of its capabilities. BNIA-JFI has strengthened the Vital Signs report and provided additional services and resources for those who seek data, information, and analysis about the city.

The complete Vital Signs series of reports, along with a separate executive summary, data, maps and other research by BNIA-JFI, are available at www.bniajfi.org.

Listen to WYPR's coverage of Vital Signs 14, including an interview with Iyer.

Read about the report in Technical.ly Baltimore.

University of Baltimore Graduates Lead Majority of Area's Largest Accounting Firms
 
pen and bar graph

Of the 25 largest accounting firms in metropolitan Baltimore, nearly half are led by alumni from the University of Baltimore—with the largest concentration bearing UB graduate degrees. University of Baltimore alumni are serving in top leadership positions at nine of these 25 firms; all but one of them earned a graduate degree from UB's Merrick School of Business or the School of Law.

UB's dominance in this category—as compiled in the Baltimore Business Journal's annual Book of Lists—has been steady going back at least 15 years. Consistently, UB has been a top producer of alumni leaders in accounting, with one or more of its graduates in the position of managing partner or its equivalent. In 2013, the University had its highest number of alumni represented so far, with 13 in the survey of the top 25 largest area firms. Year over year, UB's alumni numbers far surpass the representation of accounting graduates from other area institutions.


Of the 25 largest accounting firms in metropolitan Baltimore, nearly half are led by alumni from the University of Baltimore—with the largest concentration bearing UB graduate degrees. University of Baltimore alumni are serving in top leadership positions at nine of these 25 firms; all but one of them earned a graduate degree from UB's Merrick School of Business or the School of Law.

UB's dominance in this category—as compiled in the Baltimore Business Journal's annual Book of Lists—has been steady going back at least 15 years. Consistently, UB has been a top producer of alumni leaders in accounting, with one or more of its graduates in the position of managing partner or its equivalent. In 2013, the University had its highest number of alumni represented so far, with 13 in the survey of the top 25 largest area firms. Year over year, UB's alumni numbers far surpass the representation of accounting graduates from other area institutions.

The 2016 Book of Lists was published last December.

"We have such a long history of success in producing accounting leaders that by now it's not a phenomenon—it's more like business as usual," said Merrick School of Business Dean Murray Dalziel. "Tracking the records, year over year, shows that while accounting firms may or may not grow in terms of business and influence, what remains true is that our graduates are running, and will continue to run, the majority of these highly successful, highly impactful companies. That's what we're most proud of: UB's long record of sending off our accounting graduates into a competitive market, knowing that a significant number of them will one day serve as CEO. It's a bedrock claim for us."

The leaders and their firms' respective ranking in the 2016 Book of Lists are:

  • Jeffrey N. Berman, M.S. '96, CPA, CFP, PFS, managing partner and shareholder, KBST&M, P.A. (#23)
  • Patrick Byer, M.B.A, '94, managing principal - Maryland Region, CliftonLarsonAllen LLP (#4)
  • Arthur E. Flach, M.S. '83, CPA, managing partner, Grant Thornton, LLP, (retired) (#18); currently an executive in residence in the Merrick School of Business.
  • Andy Garrett, J.D., '88, managing partner, Weil, Akman, Baylin & Coleman (#13)
  • Simpson H. Gardyn, M.S. '80, CPA, CVA, managing officer, Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn, P.A. (#10)
  • David A. Goldner, M.S. '83, CPA, CFP, CVA, managing partner, Gross, Mendelsohn & Associates (#11)
  • Jeffrey Jacobson, J.D., '91, former principal, Mister, Burton, Palmisano & French (#22); now director of tax at Weyrich, Cronin & Sorra
  • Howard J. Rosen, B.S. '71, president, RS&F Chartered (#16)
  • Frank Savarese, B.S. '79, M.S. '86, CPA, CFP, managing partner, Weyrich, Cronin & Sorra Chartered (#20)

In its undergraduate accounting specialization, UB offers expertise for careers in public accounting, banking, financial analysis, credit management, government, nonprofits, and more. On the graduate degree side, the M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory Services is a specialized program built for both current accounting professionals and career-changers.

Message from the Dean

In the very first University of Baltimore academic catalog circa 1925, a statement attributed to late Charles William Eliot, president of Harvard University from 1869-1909, was inserted as a way to frame what schools of commerce and business administration were tasked to do:


"I believe commerce and industry in their higher ranges to be eminently intellectual pursuits, and I know of no other intellectual calling for which a professional school is not now provided. It used to be the fashion to study medicine by cleaning the doctor’s horse and buggy, grinding his drugs and driving around with him to make his calls; and to study law by copying deeds and briefs in a lawyer’s office, and reading books taken from the lawyer’s library in the intervals of clerical labor, but the world has now learned that there is a better way of studying medicine and law; namely, by going to a professional school, where progressive, systematic instruction rapidly developed is to be had. To deny that young men [people] may be systematically trained for industry and commerce, is to assert that industry and commerce are merely imitative arts to be acquired only by seeing other people do the tricks, and then practicing them. In industry and commerce, all things are become new; new methods of preparing young men [people] for these occupations must be invented with discriminating foresight, established with prudence, and maintained with liberality."



Today this commentary still holds true—“in industry and commerce all things are becoming new.”  That is why our faculty are engaged in research—we need foresight to prepare students for future roles with technologies, opportunities and challenges very different from what we all may have faced only a short decade ago. 

Some of the themes that our faculty are exploring include the implications of cyber-security; risk and resilience in business; how entrepreneurs in difficult circumstances (especially in emerging countries) deal with financing their businesses; the intersection of ethics, regulation and compliance (especially in financial services); and how digital technologies are transforming the way people do business. In our Jacob France Institute, we house the Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, a powerful source of data that community organizations, government and business can use to build policies that contribute to the economic development of Baltimore. 

These and many more of the themes we explore influence how we teach. As our new mission statement points out: “Our students learn to make a positive impact from faculty who develop compelling knowledge that influences communities, businesses, professions, and scholars.”

Students choose the Merrick School of Business because it stands for value and substance. You hear that sentiment most often from our students around graduation. This spring, 148 undergraduates and 74 graduate students graduated during the University of Baltimore's 121st Commencement Exercises. Each commencement is a joyous celebration, not only for the graduates and their families, but for our faculty too. Our faculty are celebrating right along with the graduates—knowing that the fruits of their teaching will continue to incrementally impact the world around us.

I am pleased to report that for another year US News and World Report ranked our undergraduate programs as one of the top programs in their “Best Colleges” rankings.  Our recently redisgned MBA, with its considerable flexibility in terms of what students choose to learn and how they learn it, is getting increased recognition. The flexibility is recognized by US News and world Report, which ranked our online MBA as one of the top programs in their “Best Online” category this year. Similarly, CEO Magazine, ranked our Online MBA #26 in their global rankings

Again, quoting from our new mission, we will continue to “use our urban education hub to offer practical, career-minded and globally engaged business education that inspires professional and entrepreneurial growth.”  What a great academic year is a head for the Merrick School of Business.

Sincerely,


Murray M. Dalziel, Ph.D.
Dean, Merrick School of Business

Newly Launched Videos from the MBA Program

Learning by Doing

Ryan Schuman is an MBA candidate who also runs his own company—and let's just say it's a bit out of the ordinary. He shares his thoughts about the UB MBA experience and what it's like to be an entrepreneur who is learning by doing. 

More Than Spreadsheets 


University of Baltimore student Tatiana Jimenez, B.S.'12, is finding solutions through the MBA. Jimenez is working on her second UB degree and is digging deeper into information technology and its importance in an organization—it's much more than spreadsheets and shortcuts.

A Leadership Focus 

Mike Clift, MBA '16, is a working professional with important responsibilities at his company. He shares his experiences with applying lessons to his work, gaining lifelong insights that will benefit his career, and more while pursuing a University of Baltimore MBA.

The Balancing Act: Work, the MBA and a Personal Life

Marie Zoscak, MBA '16, is a working professional managing a team of four. She shares her experiences of balancing work, family and social obligations, and learning from her degree program in the University of Baltimore MBA.


Marketing is Everywhere

Professor of Marketing Dennis Pitta, (no— not the Baltimore Ravens tight end!) shares his thoughts about teaching in the MBA program and how his approach fits into the program theme of "Interfacing with External Stakeholders."

Benefits of a Positive Workforce

Associate Professor of Management Lisa Stickney talks about teaching in the MBA program and how she fits her experiences into the program theme of "Leading and Managing People."

Innovation Plays A Critical Role in Creating Competitive Advantages 


Assistant Professor of Management Amir Pezeshkan provides insights about the coursework for the MBA program and how what he teaches fits into the program theme of "Managing Innovation and Strategy." 

We're Training Experts

 

Associate Professor of Finance Steve Isberg discusses his methods of providing education, and how his teaching fits into the program theme of "Managing Performance and Risk."  

The Entire Business Enterprise

         

Assistant Professor of Management William "Bill" Carter talks about teaching in the MBA program and how he brings his external experiences into the program theme of "Managing Innovation and Strategy." 

What MBA Students Need

Professor of Management Tigi Mersha shares a wealth of knowledge about teaching in the MBA program and explains his efforts to add value to the MBA program theme of "Leveraging Technology and Business Intelligence."

 

The Verizon Case Study



Manual Sampedro, MBA '99, and Eusebio Scornavacca, associate professor of information systems, offer perspectives on the Verizon Case Study.

Optimization In Everyday Life

Assistant Professor of Decision Science M. Gisela Bardossy provides insights into her teaching in the MBA and how it fits the program theme of "Leveraging Technology and Business Intelligence."

UB's Online MBA Ranked #26 Globally by CEO Magazine

The online MBA program in the University of Baltimore's Merrick School of Business is ranked #26 in CEO Magazine's 2016 Global MBA Rankings, published Feb. 8. The London-based publication surveyed more than 300 business schools across North America, Europe and Australia in search of the most effective MBA programs, both on-campus and online, as well as other MBA-like offerings. UB's overall MBA also was ranked in the second tier of all such programs in North America, alongside programs at Bowling Green State University, Akron University, Iowa State University, and more than a dozen others.

"CEO's ranking is new territory for our MBA, and we're quite proud to receive the recognition," said Merrick School of Business Dean Murray Dalziel. "This is clearly a publication intended for business leaders around the world, who are looking for MBA graduates with a deep understanding of business processes, strategic approaches to growth and change, and long-term visioning for their companies. I'm pleased to see us among such good company."

CEO said its Global MBA Rankings are "designed with applicants in mind, and examine the nuts and bolts of an MBA: the learning environment, class sizes, tuition fees, faculty, delivery methods, international diversity, gender make-up and more. The objective is simple: to identify schools which marry exceptional quality with great ROI."

View the 2016 Global MBA Rankings by CEO Magazine.

Learn more about UB's MBA program.

 

We Are ... More Than You Know
Check out our new brochure and find out how we are impacting our students and our city (.pdf).


Upcoming Events

There's always something going on at UB.
Check out what's happening during the fall semester.

AUGUST

Aug. 17 - Happy Hour in Harford County
Aug. 18 - Graduate Business Programs Information Session
Aug. 29 - Classes Begin, 15-week semester and 7-week MBA session Session I

SEPTEMBER

Sept. 7 -   Coffee & Learn - Opportunity Recognition  
Sept. 13 - Social Media, Search Engine Optimization, Website Design Evening Workshop
Sept. 14 - Accounting Career Fair
Sept. 20 - 5th Annual Young Alumni Event at Union Craft Brewing
Sept. 21 - Startup Maryland – Mt. Royal Block Party
Sept. 28 - Coffee & Learn: Financial Rational of Starting a Business 

OCTOBER

Oct. 5   - Coffee & Learn: Developing a Business Model Canvas
Oct. 11 -  How to use your Website, Facebook & Google to increase sales
Oct. 15 - Alumni Barbecue in Alexandria, VA
Oct. 17 - Classes Begin, 7-week MBA session Session II
Oct. 19 - A Celebration of Service: UB's Volunteer Appreciation Reception
Oct. 27 - 'Talking Selfies': How Storytelling Can Help You Make Meaningful Connections with People You Want to Meet

NOVEMBER

Nov. 2 -  Speed Networking
Nov. 14-17 -  Global Entrepreneurship Week
Nov. 14 - Workshop for Fashion Entrepreneurs
Nov. 15 - Leonard and Phyllis Attman Competitive Business Prize - LIVE! Come see UB’s version of “Shark Tank!”
Nov. 17 - Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation's 10-Year Anniversary Party

 

 

Videos: Spring Merrick Engages

"Merrick Engages" is a series that takes a close look at contemporary business topics through the lenses of successful business leaders. Each business leader sits down with Murray Dalziel, dean of the Merrick School of Business, and a conversation is sparked to better inform us and provide us with a new perspective. Each time, the dialogue will delve into topics pertaining to careers, business transformation and life lessons learned.

In February 2016, we offered "Looking for Business in All the Right Places: Principles of a Habitual Entrepreneur," a conversation with Rich Nelson. Nelson is a principal at PCM Services, a Maryland-based maintenance, repair, renovation and construction services company.
View event video (1:05:00).
In early March 2016 we hosted, "Business Creation and Community Transformation: Why Both Go Together," a conversation with Jay Steinmetz. Steinmetz is CEO and Co-founder of Baltimore-based Barcoding Inc., a systems integrator specializing in the development, deployment, and management of enterprise-wide solutions in areas of supply chain architecture and analytics, automatic identification (AIDC), radio frequency identification (RFID), consumables, software, and professional services. View event video (1:13:10).
In late-March, we brought to campus, David Sharman for a conversation entitled, "Business Resurrection: Bringing Life Back to the Disrupted Company." Sharman is the co-CEO of Hibu, a company that provides digital and print marketing technology and content services to nearly one million small and medium-sized businesses in the U.S., UK, Spain and Latin America. View event video (1:10:31).

The final spring conversation focused on a conversation titled, "No One Has Traveled Here: The Story of Virgin Galactic," a conversation with Richard DalBello. DalBello is Vice President of Business Development and Government Affairs of Virgin Galactic, a firm that see its purpose to become the "spaceline" for Earth, democratizing access to space for the benefit of life on the planet. View event video (1:22:52).





 

Reflections from Cuba
by W. Alan Randolph, Professor Emeritus of International Business and Strategy
 
Alan Randolph in Cuba
Imagine being in Havana, Cuba, in 2016, watching TV in a hotel lobby while history is being made. March 20, to be precise, the day that President Obama arrived at Jose Marti International Airport to cap off a period of negotiations between Cuba and the United States to bring an end to a long stalemate – a leftover from the Cold War that some believed would never end.   The Cubans gathered around the TV that day were so excited for this visit—the first by a sitting president in almost 90 years.  Because they see hope for better relations with the U.S. as a path to a better future for themselves. Indeed, it was hard not to get caught up in the excitement. But it was not the main reason my wife Ruth Anne and I were in Cuba at that time.

Learn more Professor Randolph.

Imagine being in Havana, Cuba, in 2016, watching TV in a hotel lobby while history is being made. March 20, to be precise, the day that President Obama arrived at Jose Marti International Airport to cap off a period of negotiations between Cuba and the United States to bring an end to a long stalemate – a leftover from the Cold War that some believed would never end. The Cubans gathered around the TV that day were so excited for this visit—the first by a sitting president in almost 90 years,. because they see hope for better relations with the U.S. as a path to a better future for themselves. Indeed, it was hard not to get caught up in the excitement. But it was not the main reason my wife Ruth Anne and I were in Cuba at that time.

On March 18, we departed Miami on a charter flight with a group of 18 Americans on a Road Scholar people-to-people trip. Simply put, this kind of educational excursion is the only way that U.S. citizens can visit Cuba legally. That will soon change -- the U.S. has re-opened its embassy in Havana, and all sorts of trade deals and business and governmental opportunities are being explored by both countries. But until relations are fully restored, this is how Americans and Cubans have interacted. 

We were scheduled to stay in the famed Hotel Nationale de Cuba, but because of President Obama’s visit and the Tampa Bay baseball team coming to play the Cuban national team, we were bumped. At first we joked that President Obama was staying in our rooms, but then we learned it was probably the baseball players.

When you leave the Havana airport, the first thing you notice is all the vintage 1950s American cars on the road. It is amazing to see them looking very well maintained and running well, too. This is an odd but positive outcome of Fidel Castro and the communists’ takeover of the government in 1959: U.S. cars were banned from Cuba – none coming in, and none going out. But the Cubans are an ingenious people, and they have found ways to keep these cars running, even without replacement parts from the U.S. Indeed, many of the elegant taxis in Havana are from Detroit. One night, we went to dinner in a beautiful green 1953 Chevy, and the owner told us that his grandmother had purchased the car in 1953. His father later inherited it, and then it came to him. Can you imagine a car in your family for over 60 years?

The visits organized for our group were designed to give us a flavor for what Cuba is like today, and how it is evolving under Raul Castro, Fidel’s brother and president of Cuba since 2006, when Fidel’s failing health compelled him to give up the job.

The Castro brothers, Che Guevara and 15 others came ashore in 1956 from Mexico to a Cuba that was ready for change. The Cuban people were living under the brutal dictator, Batista, during this period. . There was a small percentage of wealthy people, mostly sugar cane owners, with Cuban organized crime and their hotels as American playgrounds. A large majority of the people were very poor and had no rights. Castro and his followers took power in Havana in 1959 and wanted to create a utopian society where everyone was equal – so he took from the rich (many of whom moved to south Florida) and redistributed the wealth. As we now know, that plan, in many ways, did not work, especially when Castro allied with the Soviet Union against the U.S. and the American government treated Cuba as a major enemy. Diplomatic relations ended in 1961. The distrust was deep on both sides. But after more than 50 years of this embargo, and over 20 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, which left Cuba isolated and economically deprived, the time has come for change.

Currently, Cubans live on $25-35 per month per person, plus a ration booklet that allows them to meet their basic needs — hard to imagine. The government for all people, regardless of their job — doctor, teacher, and mechanic, sets this salary evenly. The government owns everything, or at least a big part of it. There are some hotels, like the one where we stayed in Varadero, which is 51 percent owned by the Cuban government and 49 percent owned by a Spanish hotel chain. Other hotels, like the Hotel Nationale de Cuba and the one we were moved to, are government hotels. They’re not bad, but not up to U.S. and European standards.

The best way to describe conditions across the island now is to say that people are getting by. In Havana, they can use the water supply every other day, but most people have electricity. They are well educated (schooling is free from primary grades through university), the arts are flourishing, and health care is very good. One person in our traveling group experienced a Cuban health clinic; she received excellent service and treatment, even though she had to wait two hours to be seen.

We visited the Museum of Fine Arts in Havana, where we saw wonderful work by Cuban artists, some of which depicted life in the country during the 1960s and in what they now call “The Special Period” – the 1990s after the Soviets pulled out. A musicologist provided us with a history lesson on how Spanish, African and Cuban music have evolved, especially since Cuba gained its freedom from Spain in 1902.

Two visits gave us the greatest insights into the current strengths of Cuba. First, we met with some dance companies. They performed for us, and then we learned some salsa steps and talked with the dancers about their training and dreams for the future. They talked about performing in other Latin American countries, and how they look forward to dancing in the U.S. We also visited a couple of farms – one practicing organic techniques that are quite popular in Cuba. The food at the farm was delicious. The other farm was run by a man who had taken an abandoned sugar cane farm as a squatter in 1985 and now combines planting with pottery and philosophy. We had great conversations with him about the connections between the writings of Walt Whitman and the first leader of Cuba, Jose Marti. Both of these farms speak to the ingenuity and drive of the Cuban people.

We saw this incredible resolve in other tour stops. One was with a community organizing group in Old Havana called Muraleando, where a group of artists have banded together to create a community center for poor children using only the proceeds from their art. The other was a neighborhood where an artist, Jose Fuster, has created a sense of pride in his community by helping to decorate people’s homes with beautiful mosaic tiles. The pride in this community was easy to see.

We also visited with a tobacco farmer in the Vinales region, where much of the Cuban tobacco crop is grown. Here we experienced what they call “Usufruct,” where the government owns the land, the farmer grows the tobacco, and the proceeds are split 90 percent to the government and 10 percent to the farmer. That’s probably not how American capitalists would like it, but this is one of the small changes that is occurring under Raul Castro.

Another change is in the small restaurants, called paladars, which are owned and run by entrepreneurs. Sometimes the money used to start the paladar comes from the U.S., but it must come quietly – the restaurant has to be owned and run by a Cuban.

Yes, the government still wields a strong hand in Cuba. During the time when Fidel Castro was in power, dissidents who voiced negative opinions against the government were jailed and sometimes tortured. Now someone who complains about the government might spend a night in jail – better, but still not justifiable.

Our neighbor to the south shows a lot of hope, especially when it comes to improved relations with the U.S. Cubans are proud, insightful and optimistic. They are ready for change, though many still revere Castro and Guevara for what they tried to do for their country. Raul Castro is creating change, and when he steps down in 2018, the next leader will be someone born after the revolution in 1959. During President Obama’s visit, Raul said, “We must be focused on the things that join us not the ones that separate us. It takes a short time to destroy a bridge. The hard task is to rebuild it.”

So, after having had a glimpse of modern Cuba, I hope we can go back someday, find it to be even stronger, and maybe then we’ll take one of those vintage cars out for a ride ourselves. The future holds great promise for the island, and for its peaceful coexistence with its American neighbors to the north.   

Learn more about Professor Randolph.

Entrepreneurship Professor to Present D.C. Talk on Formation of New Businesses

The growing complexities of the global economy—and the ways those intricate systems work for or against the formation of new business, large and small—were  addressed by David Lingelbach, associate professor of entrepreneurship, when he served on a panel discussion at the 32nd Annual National Association of Business Economics Economy Policy Conference in March in Washington, D.C.

Lingelbach was joined by fellow scholars Chris Jackson, research assistant for Small Business Research and Policy at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, and Holly Wade, director of Research and Policy Analysis for the NFIB Foundation for a panel entitled “Policies to Promote New Business Formation.”

The conference was held March 6-8 at the Capital Hilton in Washington. Lingelbach said the panel was designed to elucidate policymakers, business experts and market analysts on the links between highly sophisticated global systems and the processes that encourage or discourage the creation of new business. “Policies to promote startups should focus on high-growth firms and deemphasize support for generic startups,” Lingelbach said. “High-growth firms live in vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystems. Public policy can promote these uncommon types of startups by improving their access to finance, helping to fund public-private ‘entrepreneurial enablers’ that promote ecosystems, and, in disadvantaged communities, focusing on more effective public-private collaboration at the local level. At least, that’s what international evidence has suggested so far.”

The NABE Economic Policy Conference is the premier national event addressing issues at the nexus of economics, business, and policy. This year’s theme, “Policy Challenges in an Interconnected World,” explored the tests for political and business leaders as they guide their countries and companies through an increasingly complex maze of global challenges marked by demographic shifts, political change, technological advances, and deeper trade linkages. The event was attended by hundreds of corporate economists, business leaders and top policymakers.

Learn more about Professor Lingelbach.

Accounting Professor Wins School of Business's Outstanding Article of the Year

During a May luncheon, Associate Professor of Accounting Mikhail Pevzner received the Merrick School of Business's Black & Decker Outstanding Article award for calendar year 2015 for co-authoring the paper, "When firms talk, do investors listen? The role of trust in stock market reactions to corporate earnings announcements," which was published last July in the Journal of Financial Economics. The journal is on the Financial Times’s list of top scholarly publications worldwide, and exemplifies research excellence in the accounting field.

The paper provided a previously documented link between a company's debtholders and the behavior of the company's accountants in crafting a conservative path regarding the reporting of profits and loss has been further strengthened in research conducted in part by a University of Baltimore business professor. The result is an article in the prestigious Journal of Accounting Research, followed by the prestigious Black & Decker award.

"Our study examined whether the level of trust in a country affects investors' perception and utilization of information transmitted by firms through financial disclosure," Pevzner said. "My colleagues, Fei Xie, associate of finance at the University of Delaware, and Xiangang Xin, associate professor at the City University of Hong Kong, and I specifically investigated the effect of societal trust on investor reactions to corporate earnings announcements.

We tested two competing hypotheses: On the one hand, corporate earnings announcements are perceived as more credible by investors in more trusting societies and, therefore, elicit stronger investor reactions. This was a truly joint effort of the co-authors, whom I greatly thank for their contributions. We combined our unique strengths in this highly challenging project, and my getting this award would not be possible without this excellent collaboration. I'd like to deeply thank Black & Decker and my fellow colleagues at Merrick for their support in sustaining high-quality research in the University of Baltimore."

Learn more about Prof. Pevzner and UB's undergraduate accounting specialization and its M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory Services.

In addition to the Outstanding Article Award, the School of Business announced professorships, chairs and annual teaching awards for the academic year 2015-16 at the school’s May awards ceremony:

Professorships / Chairs

  • Veena Adlakha, professor of management, awarded the CSX Leadership Chair
  • Regina Bento, professor of management, awarded the Baltimore Gas and Electric Chair
  • Mikhail Pevzner, associate professor of accounting, continues to hold the Ernst & Young Chair in Accounting
  • Dennis Pitta, professor of marketing, continues to hold the J. William Middendorf Distinguished Professor
  • Eusebio Scornavacca, assistant professor of information systems, continues to hold the John P. & Margaret M. Thompson Professorship in MIS
  • Jaya Singhal, professor of decision science, continues to hold the Frank Baker Chair for Research Excellence
  • Kalyan Singhal, professor of supply chain management, continues to hold the Doris and Robert McCurdy Chair
  • Lourdes White, professor of accounting, awarded the Lockheed Martin Chair
  • Nafeesa Yunus, associate professor of finance and real estate, awarded the Harry Y. Wright Chair

Annual Teaching and Service Awards

  • Lisa Stickney, associate professor of management, and Eusebio Scornavacca, assistant professor of information systems, received the Dean Clifford C. James Chair for Distinguished Teaching
  • Jan Williams, associate professor of accounting, and Mikhail Pevzner, associate professor of accounting, received the Yale Gordon Chair for Distinguished Teaching
  • J.C. Weiss, senior lecturer in finance and entrepreneurship, received the T. Rowe Price Teaching Award and the Turner Medallion
  • Dong Chen, associate professor of finance, received the Chase Manhattan Bank Research Award
  • Frank van Vliet, executive-in-residence in marketing and entrepreneurship, received the G. Maxwell Armor Professorship
Professor Stickney: 'Soft Skills' Must Be Taught, Not Assumed

Speaking at the U.S. News STEM Solutions National Leadership Conference in Baltimore on May 20, Lisa Stickney, associate professor in the University of Baltimore's Merrick School of Business, said it is crucial for today's college students to receive a cohesive message when it comes to developing "soft skills"—those professional attributes that reside outside of education and training, such as writing a cogent memo or following the rules of etiquette at a business gathering.

At UB, Stickney said, students receive consistent, curriculum-based communications about these skills: they are important; they are not self-evident; they can affect a student's success regardless of his or her chosen field.

"We infuse things so that students are getting the repetition: They're getting the same message, and they're getting it from the College of Arts and Sciences, they're getting it from the School  of Business," Stickney said. "Even basic things, it doesn't dawn on them—you don't order spaghetti when you're at a business lunch. Make it something easy to eat and talk at the same time."

The conference, now in its fifth year, "brings together the brightest minds in business, academia and government not only to contribute key insights to the nationwide STEM debate; but also to ensure that STEM's hard-won momentum is channeled into practical, self-sustaining strategies for inspiring, educating and hiring the diverse STEM workforce of tomorrow," according to the conference's website.

Learn more about Stickney and her fellow panelists' discussion on developing and assessing soft skills at the STEM Solutions National Leadership Conference.

 

2016 Rise to the Challenge Winners

A University of Baltimore alumnus and two UB students were the winners of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation’s fourth annual “Rise to the Challenge” Pitch Competition, an opportunity to show off new ideas and concepts for businesses before an audience of consumers and entrepreneurial experts. The event, held on April 21, featured presentations by seven finalists, each aiming for prize money and support to launch or grow their businesses.

The 2016 Rise to the Challenge winners were:

  • Jaminson Rodriguez, junior in the Merrick School of Business, for Specialty Auto Parts, a new service to ship parts or export complete cars from companies or private sellers who are neglecting the international market. Rodriguez won $500 in cash and more than $1,200 from the 2016 Rise to the Challenge
  • Takia Ross, B.A. ’11, for Accessmatized, an in-home professional and affordable make-up service company. Ross, who started Accessmatized in 2013, won $2,500 in cash and more than $1,200 for in-kind services in the category of “Existing Business.”
  • Ryan Schuman, University of Baltimore MBA candidate, for BubbleballMD, a full-service operator of bubble soccer in the mid-Atlantic region, available for party rentals, corporate functions and school events. Schuman won $250 in cash and $1,200 for in-kind services in the category of “Existing Business/Crowd Favorite Winner.”


Learn more about the Rise to the Challenge competition.

Business School's Case Competition Joins Forces with Major Mid-Atlantic Provider of Wireless Communications

Communications Electronics, a key provider for mission-critical wireless communications in the mid-Atlantic, is the latest company to participate in a real-world business case competition held in the University of Baltimore's Merrick School of Business. Students in a 300-level class led by Eusebio Scornavacca, the school's John and Margaret Thompson Professor of Management Information Systems, formed teams and competed with each other during the spring semester to solve a real-world business challenge presented by Communications Electronics.

It's the sixth business-case competition hosted by Scornavacca and the school. Past corporate partners include Flannigan & Sons, Gensler, Skyline, and Verizon.

Although the details of the project are closely held because the company may choose to apply them to its practices, the student-led process of interacting with a client and coming up with a solution to a real-world problem makes the effort an incomparable experiential learning opportunity, Scornavacca says. Setting up the process as a competition among the students—with a $2,000 prize donated by the company and presented to the winning team—only heightens the experience.

In this instance, students were asked to use management information systems concepts and techniques to help Communications Electronics reach a workforce utilization goal. Working on an actual case for an existing company, Scornavacca explains, encourages his students to "apply the knowledge gained in class to solve complex business problems while working collaboratively in small teams."

Christine DuBois, business analyst for Communications Electronics, along with her colleagues Ray Parker and Sean Jarvin, presented the case and worked closely with the Merrick teams. Dubois says the students "took the project to heart and didn't just try and 'make it work' for the course. I believe that is a direct result of having names and faces with real-life issues versus a textbook case study of widgets and stakeholders."

Roger Cassell, president of Communications Electronics, says he is pleased with the outcome.  

"We definitely learned some things and will be taking a hard look at our processes," he says. 

While learning to collaborate is an important learning outcome for the students, the competitive nature of the business case is another. The student teams compete to develop effective and achievable solutions for the company, and the winning team, judged by company representatives and Prof. Scornavacca, receives useful feedback and a financial reward.

"We are creating an environment that encourages our students to go 'beyond the A+'—translating learning opportunities into marketable skills," Scornavacca says.

Anthony Viennas, a member of the winning team, says that "while some solutions might look good on paper, these had to be feasible and obtainable within a short time frame." His fellow team member, Noel Spencer, says he found the case challenging as well, especially identifying solutions that would "accommodate the cross training of employees in different areas of the business in ways that would strengthen utilization rates."

Viennas, Spencer and team members John Cole, William Pierre and Emily Thompson won the competition by recommending more effective methods for Communications Electronics to collect and evaluate its data.

"The project, coupled with a high-stakes presentation, allowed us to gain the real-world experience necessary for success in the future," Cole says.

Learn more about Prof. Scornavacca.

 

Annual Student Awards
2015-2016 Academic Achievement Awards and Honor Society Induction Ceremonies

In a yearly tradition, the Merrick School of Business held its Academic Achievement Awards event in May. It’s an opportunity to celebrate the hard work of our students and send them off into the world to pursue their chosen careers.

During the ceremony, the 2016 Dean’s Award was presented to Laurie Cole, B.S. ’16.  Cole was selected from a pool of undergraduate students who most clearly demonstrate high academic achievement, leadership and service.

Cole transferred to the University of Baltimore in the fall of 2014, and has made the most of her time ever since. She has excelled as an accounting major, making the Dean’s List with high honors each semester. She also is a graduate of the Accounting Honors program. Her many accomplishments affirm her dedication to the field of accounting and as an emerging leader. Cole has grown immensely as a person during her time at UB, finding moments to mentor up-and-coming accounting students, participating in the Maryland Association of CPAs’ Student Leadership Academy and recently as an inductee into Omicron Delta Kappa—the honor society for leadership. She was also to be inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma and Sigma Iota Epsilon.

As a former vice president of Beta Alpha Psi, Cole used her skills to develop a better communication plan and helped formulate ways to address the information gap to its membership. These abilities and more afforded her a coveted internship at RSM US, where she accepted a position as risk advisory services consultant, starting in July.   

Cole’s academic achievements earned her Summa Cum Laude status at the spring 2016 Commencement.

Cole was not alone in receiving accolades during the event. The following students were awarded plaques and cash awards for their stellar achievements. Those who graduated in fall 2015 and spring 2016 were eligible for the awards.

  • Accounting – Laurie Cole, B.S. ’16
  • MACPA Outstanding Student Award – Muhammad Owais, B.S. ’16
  • International Business – Denilson  Pazos, B.S. ’16
  • Management - Paul  Simpkins, B.S. ’16
  • Real Estate and Economic Development – Michael Culp, B.S. ’16 and Brendan Ferrara, B.S. ’16 
  • Finance – Kristen Ng B.S. ’15
  • Charles Siegmann Information Technology Award – Kenneth Swearengen, B.S. ’16
  • Human Resource Management  – Andrele Cummings,      B.S. ’15
  • Peter Lynagh Marketing Practitioner Award – Ikechukwu Opaigbeogu, B.S. ’16
  • Peter Lynagh Marketing Merit Award – Genevieve Feild, B.S. ’16
  • Entrepreneurship Merit Award – Ashleigh Christopher, B.S. ’16
  • Entrepreneurship Practitioner Award - Sakina Stamper, B.S. ’16

Honor Society Inductions

The Merrick School of Business inducted 101 students into the five business-focused honor societies during a May ceremony. To see who made the list and see some event photos, visit the webpages dedicated to our honor societies.

Student Entrepreneur Named 'Influential Marylander'

Chris Wilson, an Entrepreneurship Fellow in the University of Baltimore’s Merrick School of Business, was named a 2016 Influential Marylander by the Daily Record in the newspaper’s “Freestyle” category. A resident of Baltimore City, Wilson is the owner and founder of the Barclay Investment Corporation, a multi-service social enterprise specializing in residential and commercial contracting work. He transferred to UB after earning his associates degree from Anne Arundel Community College.

“I’m humbled to be considered an Influential Marylander,” Wilson said. “My motivation stems from helping underemployed men and women in Baltimore find ways to better their lives through full employment. I’m just getting started and proud to be part of Baltimore’s comeback story.”

Each year, the Daily Record’s editors evaluate Marylanders in categories of civic leadership, communications, finance, education, healthcare, law, philanthropy, real estate, technology and general business. The “Freestyle” category included influential Marylanders who do not fit neatly into other categories. Special consideration is given for nominees in terms of their influence, prominence, contributions to industry, stature within industry and community involvement.

In 2014, Wilson was a winner in the Merrick School’s inaugural Attman Competitive Business Prize. Wilson cited his Barclay company (one of three companies he was running at the time of the competition) to the competition’s judges, who pointed to its mission and philosophy in awarding Wilson a top prize of $2,500 in cash and $8,500 in donated professional services, amenities and labor. Barclay interacts with local workforce professionals and social service providers to connect unemployed Baltimore City residents with commercial and residential clients who are in need of a range of building services.

Wilson, who also owns and operates House of DaVinci, a high-end furniture restoration firm, is working on a book titled “The Master Plan” portraying his life’s journey. The book will be published by Putnam Publishing.

Visit Wilson's website.

 

Business Student's Parking App a Finalist for Light City Baltimore's Pitch Competition

Roadi, a parking app created by Opeyemi “Ope”Thomas, a student in the University of Baltimore’s Merrick School of Business, was one of 10 finalists in the inaugural “Light City Baltimore” pitch competition for new companies. Roadi was one of five startups in the sustainability category. The competi­tion was part of Light City U, an innovation conference that was held late March in various locations around Baltimore city.

Thomas is a junior in the Merrick School of Business. He is part of the school’s Entrepreneurship Fellows program, and served as president of the UB Investment Society last academic year. He is also the CEO of Roadi.

The mobile Roadi app delivers street parking recommendations based on historical and real-time data. Thomas said the app is now available in the Apple app store. The App launched on IOS platform on July 8. The soft launch with take place in August at UB’s Welcome Week. Thomas is receiving support for his company via the school’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, working with its team to develop a viable business model and network with business developers in Baltimore. The center also is advising Thomas on his pitch to potential investors.

“I’m always interested in learning new things,” Thomas said. “I’m very persistent in reaching for my goals and I enjoy building relationships with others.”

Read about the competition in the Baltimore Business Journal.

Learn more about Roadi.

Learn more about the Entrepreneurship Fellows program and the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Alumni Snapshot
Anita Sheckells: A Career Focused on Advising Construction and Real Estate Firms

Anita Sheckells, B.S. ’84 (accounting), is a director with KatzAbosch and vice president of the firm’s Board of Directors. She holds the prestigious distinction of Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional (CCIFP), a certification held by less than 50 professionals in Maryland and less than 1,000 professionals in the United States. As a subject matter expert in construction accounting, Sheckells has authored several financial and accounting articles for various publications and associations. She recently sat down with The Merrick Exchange and shared some thoughts about her career, as well as some valuable advice for our students.

Merrick Exchange: How did you end up at a being an expert in construction accounting? 

S
heckells:  Early on in my career I was assigned a couple of construction clients. I enjoyed working on the clients due to the people involved, as well as the technical challenges associated with this industry. As a firm, we already had a small concentration of construction clients. My partner, Kent Thomas and I decided that we needed to formalize the structure, training and marketing of this niche. We continued to expand our experience and knowledge in the construction field by meeting with experts in the business and by attending national conferences. As part of this process, we earned the CCIFP designation. As a result, we co-founded our Construction and Real Estate Services Group which now comprises 20 percent of our annual revenues.

Merrick Exchange: Where did you get your start? What led you to your current position?

Sheckells: I started working for KatzAbosch about three weeks after I graduated from UB. I interviewed with my partner, Steve Gershman (another UB grad) and could tell right away that KatzAbosch was the firm for me. I started as a staff accountant and worked my way up to my current position of director.

During my 30-plus year tenure, I have been involved in many roles within the firm, including: Personnel, Co-Founder of Construction Group, Co-Chair of Accounting and Audit Group, Co-Chair of Tax Group, Board of Directors, Sales Team, Relationship Partner, as well as many others. One of the great things about public accounting is that there is a lot of flexibility in terms of career path and schedules.

Merrick Exchange: Please describe your current position as a director at KatzAbosch.

Sheckells: As a director, the two main components of my position are client relationships and business development. I work closely with the accounting and tax professionals that are assigned to each of my clients to make sure that our clients receive the best service and professional advice. In addition, I am involved with many outside organizations so that I can help those establishments prosper, as well as foster professional relationships that will ultimately help our firm grow.

Merrick Exchange: What are some challenges that you, your firm (or clients) are currently facing in the industry?

Sheckells: I think a common challenge for our firm, as well as our clients, is hiring and retaining good talent. We constantly look for ways to attract students to our firm. Our internship program has been very valuable in this respect. We are able to engage with students while they are still in school. They are able to work with us and see what it means to work in public accounting and to work for KatzAbosch. Then, when it is a good fit, we can offer them full-time employment after graduation.

Merrick Exchange: What were your expectations in pursuing a career in accounting?

Sheckells:  Initially, I chose accounting as a major because I took some accounting classes in high school and enjoyed working with numbers and associated challenges. Upon graduation, I chose public accounting because I wanted to work with many different companies in a variety of industries. I also wanted to work on a variety of types of work such as tax, audit and accounting. KatzAbosch has given me all of those opportunities and more.

Merrick Exchange: What advice would you give to students who might want to pursue a career in accounting?

Sheckells:  Make the most of your 150 hours. Take relevant courses for your last 30 credits and consider getting an MBA or Masters in Tax. Take the CPA exam as early as possible while the information is still fresh in your mind. Try to secure an internship as early as possible. 

Merrick Exchange: What’s the one job-hunting secret you wish all students knew?

Sheckells: Job hunting is work. First, you need to determine the type of career you would like to pursue (public accounting, private accounting, government or other.) Then, you need to research the companies that would be hiring for that position. Finally, you need to get your resume to those companies. Many people rely on their personal network to assist in this process. Don’t be afraid to ask professors, family members, neighbors, etc. to pass on your resume to their network. You never know who may be hiring.

Merrick Exchange:  Why did you choose to attend UB?

Sheckells:  I went to a community college for my first two years of college. UB had an excellent reputation in the accounting community, so it just seemed like a natural fit. Also, my sister-in-law, my husband and several friends all attended UB as well. Now, my niece will be starting at UB in the fall and will also study accounting.

Merrick Exchange: How has attending UB helped you in your career?

Sheckells: UB provided me with a solid accounting and business foundation. The professors were very knowledgeable and most of them had experience in professional practices as well as teaching. This was very helpful as they could add the real-world experience to the classroom training.

UB has helped me make connections with other professionals and potential clients over the years.  People like to do business with people who share something in common with them. I remember one particular new client who said that they called me because they saw that I was a UB grad and they were, too.

Merrick Exchange: What personal goal have you set for yourself this year?

Sheckells: I have always enjoyed working with my clients and associates and as such, spend a lot of time doing so. On the advice of my son, I am working on finding a hobby.  

 

UB Alumni Business Directory (new)
Showcase your business through the new online University of BAltimore Alumni Business Directory. Created to encourage networking and to support alumni-owned or-affilated businesses, the directory can help you reach more than 55,000 UB graduates: you can even offer exclusive discounts on products and/or services. If you're a UB graduate and would like your company to appear in the UB Alumni Business Directory, visit www.ubalt.edu/alumnibusnessdirectory. And while you're there, don't forget to do
Visit ubalt.edu/alumnibusinessdirectory if you are interested in promoting your business.
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