I have been meaning to post for the past week and finally have found some time. This past week was one busy week with my time being occupied mainly with registration planning and another wave of tests. All went well in the test sector and as far as registration went, I was just struggling with that epic dilemma of whether or not to build a schedule that will allow me to sleep in or to start early giving me more free time in the afternoon. (The early starts won out)
However, my original intention was to write about last Friday (11/7). Every year Creighton’s College of Business hosts an event called the Creighton Business Symposium. This event occurs every year in the beginning of November and the business school cancels all of its classes in order for students to attend. The event brings in business executives from all over the country to come talk to the students about leadership skills, personal experiences, and a variety of specific topics for the year. The symposium helps give students access to leaders for learning purposes as well as for networking and internship possibilities. The day is divided into blocks with a morning and an afternoon keynote speaker, as well as the opportunity to go to two panel discussions. This year’s morning keynote speaker was Ms. Mary Pat McCarthy, Vice Chair of KPMG. She talked to us about the accounting field and her successes in her career. She shared tips on how to succeed in any field and how to maintain a balance between your family and your career. She was also a Creighton alumna and she discussed how our Creighton education prepares us for the “real world.” The panel sessions focused on a variety of subjects including Legal Careers in Business, Economic Benefits of Going Green, Globalization, Sports Marketing, and tips on how to get noticed in a corporate environment.
Our afternoon keynote speaker was a Creighton alumnus, Mr. Jayme Martin, Vice President and General Manager, Nike Inc. He talked to us about a variety of things, but first just to get our attention he showed us the first ad he ever made for Nike and with that the importance of taking risks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGIq1X7_RZk
Beyond that, he talked about the ability for a corporation to affect change in the communities it operates in. For example, he talked about Nike’s backing of the LiveStrong bracelet campaign (they actually produced the bracelets with all the proceeds going to Lance’s foundation) and the organization of a run in Mexico City to protest the rampant child abductions in Mexico. He talked about Nike’s relationships with its athletes, its rise to the top in its field, and how following his dreams got him to where he is today. At the end of his presentation he called up one of the Accounting professors up to the stage and presented him with a pair of Nike Air Force 1’s that were engraved with “Dr. Lewis” on one heel and “Jays” on the other. This token was out of all that Dr. Lewis had done for him, not only at his time at Creighton, but past his undergraduate career through his time at Harvard earning his MBA to being an executive at Nike. I think this is one of the things that is extremely unique to Creighton: the ability for students to form lasting relationships with professors as mentors and friends that persist long after their time at Creighton. The office hours that Creighton professors are required to keep and the small class sizes (avg. size of 24) only encourages the professors and students to know one another.
Below, I have included a variety of pictures from this fall that I have not written about (I will provide a caption beneath each one with a brief explanation); they show a couple aspects of student life and campus. Enjoy!
Members of Creighton's Freshman Leadership Program (FLP) before one of the men's soccer games. Creighton is ranked 2nd in the nation according to the latest coaches poll.
Member's of the Cortina Living, Learning Community in front of Morrsion Stadium. Cortina is a program that is open to all sophomores. The community focuses on: Service, Faith, Justice and Community.
View of the East Side of campus.
The Billy Statue in front of Morrison Stadium. According to Creighton legend, it is good luck to rub his beak before walking into watch the game.
The Inter Residence Hall Government (IRHG) puts on tail gates before the men's home soccer games.
Creighton's annual golf cart parade during homecoming week.
Students hanging out on the mall.
Drummer from the pep band performing during homecoming week.
Creighton has an annual fun-run/race to raise money for scholarships for low-income families to Jesuit Middle School. Here is Billy crossing the finish line.
Billy congratulating one of the run's youngest participants at the finish line.
Creighton's president Fr. Schlegel during the race.
Women's soccer during warm ups.
Around Campus:
Creighton's mall is completely wireless and Creighton was ranked in the top 5 as a Wired Campus out of all universities by PC magazine.
Creighton Student's painted and ready for the game.