|
|
|||
|
August 16, 2002 |
|||
School of Business
student organizations
|
|||
|
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. —
College students sometimes have a
perception that the more extracurricular activities they have listed
on their resumé, the more well rounded they will seem when trying
to land their first job. While this belief
does have some truth to it, the “pay the fees and don’t do
anything else” tactic often applies. Student
organizations in the Indiana State University School of Business
strive to get their members as involved as they possibly can in a
variety of professional, service and social activities. These
activities not only benefit the student, but also ISU and the
surrounding community. “Student
organizations are great to be involved in,” said Dale Varble,
interim associate dean and director of the Master
of Business Administration program. “They allow students to
become leaders, work in teams and provide an opportunity to meet
people in their chosen profession. Every time I see recruiters, they
talk about the importance of gaining experience, and being part of
an organization is a good chance to get that experience.” The School of
Business is home to 11 student organizations that represent every
major, ranging from general and honorary organizations to
professional business fraternities. Twelve business
faculty members serve as voluntary advisers to these groups. “Being an
adviser is one of the nicest parts about being a faculty member,”
said Pi Omega Pi faculty adviser Mary Ellen Adams, professor and
program coordinator of the administrative systems and business
education program. “It enables you to work outside of the
classroom and help students progress in their chosen field of
study.” Pi Omega Pi is a
business education honorary organization. Students say being
part of a business organization provides an opportunity to be
involved on campus, meet new people and give them a step up in the
professional world. Senior Andy Stetter, vice president of Alpha
Iota Mu, a management information systems honorary organization,
said his organization has helped him meet many of the top
information systems professionals in Indiana from several Fortune
500 companies. At the same time,
being in Alpha Iota Mu has enabled him to meet new people and
establish friendships, as well as being able to interact with
management information systems faculty on a more regular basis.
Junior Krystle Roscoe, a member of MISA, a management information
systems organization, said joining MISA has allowed her to meet
other people in her major and to come in contact with professors
that she will possibly have in the next two years. Giving back to the
community and ISU is another important aspect in student
organization life. Students donate their time to better the
community and campus through service projects set up by their
organizations. Junior Aurmaudra
Bradley, co-chairman of the service committee for Alpha Kappa Psi
professional business fraternity, has helped to set up fund raisers
for the Humane Society and Relay For Life. Members actively
participated to raise money for those good causes by sponsoring car
washes, money drives and selling Relay for Life cards. The group
also participates in trash pick-up days where they choose an
afternoon in the spring and fall to pick up trash on campus. They
also honor School of Business faculty members with a breakfast or
luncheon every semester. Gamma Iota Sigma,
an honorary insurance and risk management organization, took time to
visit a local nursing home and share baked goodies they made for the
residents. The group plans to serve the Terre Haute youth this
coming year. Members of the
American Marketing Association promote and sponsor their annual golf
outing in an effort to help fund scholarships for high school
students in Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) programs
who plan to attend ISU. Pi Omega Pi members put together floral
bouquets for ISU support staff in honor of Administrative
Professional’s Day last year. Members of Beta Alpha Psi, an
honorary accounting organization, have participated in Race for the
Cure, March of Dimes and Habitat for Humanity. They also have a free
tutoring service for students in introductory accounting classes. Fund raising
plays a large role in an organization’s potential. Raising money
for a group can not only be creatively challenging, but also is
vital to an organization’s accomplishments. Typically, funds are
needed to help out with membership fees, travel expenses for out of
town conferences, apparel, new member events and other expenses the
organization may have. The American
Marketing Association sold long- and short-sleeved School of
Business shirts to raise funds for its cause while MISA sponsored a
pool tournament to help raise money. Fund-raising efforts for Alpha
Kappa Psi included putting together a bake sale and favorite
professor contest while members of Gamma Iota Sigma sponsored a
Bowl-A-Thon, car washes and raffles. Promoting academic
programs and an organization of interest go hand in hand. QUADS, a
quality and decision systems organization, is a primary example. “The QDS program
is small here at ISU because it was just introduced in 1996,” said
Junior Keith Parker, president of QUADS. “One of the goals we have
this year is to promote the QDS program by speaking to introductory
business and statistics classes, make it more well-known, then try
to increase our membership.” Some organizations,
especially honorary, require students to “make the grades” and
maintain a certain grade point average to have membership. “You
have to be in the top 10 percent of your major class and be
recommended by a faculty member for induction into Alpha Iota Mu,”
said Stetter. But with a support system of fellow students, there
seems to be a relationship between being in an organization and
better grades. Varble, who also is a professor of marketing, said
for the most part, students involved in organizations tend to get
higher marks in their classes than students who aren’t. This is
because members have a tendency to form study groups with one
another. While some students
may think that being in an organization is all work and no play,
they couldn’t be more wrong. End of the year banquets, holiday
parties, out-of-town conferences, trips and recreational activities
are just a few of the reasons why members find these groups so
enjoyable. These pastimes can
serve as stress-busters for hectic events such as finals, midterms
and other tests and give students a chance to relax and disregard
any other stresses they may have from everyday life. Faculty and
students agree that participation in these organizations greatly
contributes to a student’s professional and leadership
experiences. “I believe
student organizations have the potential to greatly enrich the
students’ experiences on campus,” said Beta Alpha Psi faculty
adviser Joe Sanders, associate professor and program coordinator of
the accounting program. School of
Business student organizations and fraternities: Alpha Iota Mu –
management information systems honorary organization; James
Buffington, adviser; http://alphaiotamu.org/ Alpha Kappa Psi –
professional business fraternity; Dale Varble, adviser; http://sapphire.indstate.edu/~AKP/ American Marketing
Association (AMA) – marketing organization; Joyce Young, adviser; http://web.indstate.edu/market/students.html Beta
Alpha Psi – accounting honorary organization; Joseph Sanders,
adviser; Beta Gamma Sigma
– general business honorary organization; Joseph Sanders, adviser; Delta
Sigma Pi – professional business fraternity; Joe Harder, adviser; Financial
Management Association – finance organization; Eurico Ferreira,
adviser; Gamma Iota Sigma
– insurance and risk management honorary organization; Peter
Mikolaj, adviser; http://sapphire.indstate.edu/~gamma/ Management
Information Systems Association (MISA) – management information
systems organization; James Buffington and Jeffery Harper, advisers;
http://misnt.indstate.edu/misa/ Pi
Omega Pi – business education honorary organization; Mary Ellen
Adams, adviser; QUADS – quality
and decision systems organization; Connie McLaren, adviser; http://misnt.indstate.edu/quads/ -30- Contact: Writer: ISU
Public Affairs: |
|||