Princeton Review names DSB best business school

FairField University Spring 2009 a publication of the charleS f. Dolan School of buSineSS tab le of conte nt S princeton review names DSb best business school ...............................1 Sandy Weill delivers Dolan lecture ..........2 Weather the financial crisis .....................3 2009 conlisk Scholar................................3 accounting club news ..............................4 MSt courses offered in Stamford ............4 experience china: study abroad programs ............................5 Jesuit Mba national day of service ..........5 hugh Davis, new advisory council member .......................................6 connecticut hedge fund association.......6 investment research challenge ................7 Students win trading competition ............7 new advisory council members ...............8 breathing more life into norwalk .............9 peer mediation program launched ......... 10 faculty in the news ................................ 11 Message from the Dean ......................... 12 Princeton Review names DSB best business school Although this is the fourth consecutive year the Princeton Review named the Dolan School of Business one of the best business schools in America, the honor never loses its importance to Dean Norm Solomon and his colleagues. “Being listed again shows that we have continued our level of excellence,” he said. “With all the other opportunities students have for graduate education, that they continue to choose us is high praise. It is never ‘old news’ to be considered excellent.” Dr. Dana Wilkie, director of graduate programs, said being listed showed the DSB’s consistency throughout the years because “the annual survey is based on a whole new set of students’ opinions from year to year.” Princeton Review recently released its 2009 edition of Best 290 Business Schools, which includes the opinions of students at what the Princeton Review has found to be the best Master of Business Administration programs accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International). A The editors based the profiles of schools on candid surveys of business school students and collected statistics from school administrators. The survey asked students about their school’s academics, student body, campus life, themselves, and their career plans. Students stated that “a particular strength” was the DSB’s proximity to New York City, America’s financial center. They noted that ties with well-placed alumni were particularly helpful. Students also spoke positively about faculty, saying, “they encourage openminded dialogue.” Finally, the DSB’s emphasis on a Jesuit education was a major factor in students’ decision to attend Fairfield. Writing “Jesuit traditions and philosophies aren’t just slogans here,” The Princeton Review noted that students pick Fairfield “for its strong commitment to Jesuit ideals.” “We feel being part of a Jesuit and Catholic University that promotes a values based education gives us a competitive advantage. When students state that as a reason for coming here, it says to me that they have researched their options thoroughly and have chosen us because of our unique character,” said Dr. Solomon. www.fairfield.edu/dsob Update Sandy Weill delivers Dolan Lecture ‘derivative’ was. He claimed that a lot of the failure of banks can be blamed on bankers not understanding the complex financial instruments that they were using. “Lots of people forgot the basic lessons, in that if you don’t understand something, don’t do it,” he said. To the students attending the lecture, Weill had the following advice for the future: “You shouldn’t look at change and be fearful…change creates opportunities.” Stating that the financial crisis was the biggest thing he’s seen in his life, he noted that financial services still make the world move and that students should try to work for companies where the leaders have good values, fair prices, and a spirit of philanthropy and giving back. Spring 2009 Weathering the financial crisis By Nina Riccio R etirement and long-term savings accounts are way down, and economic projections are gloomy for the next couple of years. So what’s a hard-working person to do? “Regardless of what’s going on with stocks or in the news, the basic principals of financial security still work,” said Dr. Katsiaryna Salavei, assistant professor of finance. “Save more. Spend less. And invest for the long run.” Make sure your investments are diversified among stocks, bonds, and money market funds, she added. If you have fewer than five years until retirement, put more of that money into CDs, bonds, and other safe vehicles and less than 30% in stocks. But if you’ve got years before retirement, just file your statements away and stop stressing; the market will rebound eventually. And don’t even try to “time” the market so that you buy before it spikes and sell out before it crashes. “It’s notoriously difficult to do it right, and there are so many factors that impact what happens,” she warned. Other suggestions: • If you’ve got an IRA that experienced a substantial decline in value, talk to your advisor about converting it to a Roth IRA. “You’ll pay taxes on it at the low rate if you took a hit, and hopefully you can recover it over the years,” Dr. Salavei said. • Once a year, rebalance your retirement or college savings account with your financial advisor. You will realize profits in assets that have appreciated in value and invest these profits in assets that have underperformed. Failure to rebalance can make a portfolio more risky and less diversified. • If you would like to invest outside of your retirement account and you’re OK with risk, consider investing in index or low fee mutual funds—they’re cheap right now for most asset classes both domestically and internationally. You should invest in equity funds, however, only if you can leave the money in for at least five years. Sanford “Sandy” Weill encouraged students to create their own opportunities for the future. Photo by J. Santopatre gainst a backdrop of historic changes in the financial industry, Sanford “Sandy” I. Weill, chairman emeritus of Citigroup Inc., spoke about leadership, the markets, and globalization, as part of the Charles F. Dolan Lecture Series, on Monday, November 3. His daughter, Jessica M. Bibliowicz, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of National Financial Partners, interviewed him at the end of his talk. Weill retired as Citigroup’s chief executive officer on October 1, 2003, and served as chairman until April 18, 2006. A Cornell University graduate, he has long been instrumental in numerous philanthropic projects, humanitarian efforts, and educational programs. During his illustrious career, he was chairman and chief executive officer of several major investment corporations, including Travelers, and was president of American Express Company. Prior to that, he co-founded a firm, which, while he was chairman, eventually became Shearson Loeb Rhoades – then the country’s second largest securities brokerage firm. Weill spoke about the current economic situation (as of October) and discussed the ways in which the government and business should respond. “We have to work together in a bigger way than ever before,” explained Weill on Washington D.C.’s effort to fix America’s economic woes. He correctly predicted that unemployment would continue to go up while GDP would go down, but also suggested that “we’ll have more blue sky” in about a year. He jokingly speculated that one of the reasons he retired in 2003 was because he didn’t want to learn what a A Fairfield University’s Online Community www.fairfield.edu/alumnicommunity If you’re a Fairfield graduate, spread your network of contacts with your fellow alumni. Join the more than 1,400 Fairfield Alumni Network (FAN) volunteers currently registered in Fairfield’s Online Community. Be the next to sign up as a volunteer so you can be a career resource for others! Add your company to the list of FAN Employers: Aetna American Cancer Society Children’s Memorial Hospital Citigroup ESPN Estée Lauder General Electric IBM Pfizer Time United Airlines UBS 2009 Conlisk Scholar G Fairfield’s Online Community – Register Today! erald Adams, the recipiNow a full-time student, Adam’s ent of the 2009 Rev. John ref lected that “it’s the best time to M. Conlisk Irish Scholarship be a student,” since the current ecoaward, has found the ideal combination nomic situation has made finding jobs of living and learning while studying in both Ireland and America difficult. at Fairfield University for his master’s And being a full time student has degree in finance. “It’s as much a social kept him busy. In addition to courses, experience as a learning experience,” he he has participated in the Rotman said of the combination of classes and International Trading Competition cultural exchange. and the Global Forex Trading competition, which seek to give students The Conlisk Scholarship, named after opportunities to work in real-world the late Fr. Conlisk, a 1954 Fairfield Gerald adams (second from left) with his teamfinancial situations. Prep graduate, is worth about $50,000, mates at the rotman international trading and is awarded each year to an MBA or Despite a busy academic schedule, competition and faculty advisor Dr. Michael tucker. M.S. in finance candidate from Ireland. It Adams has been able to immerse himpays full tuition, room, and board for three semesters. self in the Fairfield community. He has been a frequent guest at Kevin M. Conlisk’s ’66 house (the brother of the late Fr. Adams learned of the scholarship while he was a student Conlisk) and has become friends with students both on and at the University of Limerick, majoring in economics off campus. “It’s been a real exchange of culture,” he said. and finance. After hearing about the program, Adams took the initiative and contacted Shane O’Rourke, the Next year Adams will help welcome the new Conlisk current Conlisk scholar at the time. “I asked him a lot scholar – who happens to be a good friend from Ireland. of questions,” he said, “it was great to have someone to “It’s nice, because now I can repeat the process of answering talk to about the process.” questions and welcoming him to campus since our studies will overlap for a semester,” he said. Contributed photo 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob www.fairfield.edu/dsob 35 Update A CCO U N T ING CL UB N EWS Members of the DSB’s Accounting Club listened to officers from the Bigelow Tea Company in February. Marshall D. Adams, Senior Vice President of New Member Business and Strategic Planning, spoke to the students about the history of the company, its operations, and product development. Stephen Childs, Assistant Controller, provided an overview of the budgeting process. First Selectman Kenneth Flatto also addressed the club in February. Mr. Flatto discussed the Town of Fairfield’s Budget, his political background, and the effect of the national economic crisis on the town. He emphasized the fact that his undergraduate degree in accounting has been very helpful in performing his political functions throughout his career. Spring 2009 MST courses offered in Stamford Experience China: study abroad programs F Fairfield University’s Dolan School of Business will be offering classes in Stamford for its Master of Science in Taxation (MST) program beginning in May. Through an initiative with KPMG, the audit, tax, and advising firm, students will be able to take select required MST courses at the firm’s Summer Street building. Norm Solomon, Ph. D., dean of the Dolan School, said, “The Dolan School’s Stamford location will undoubtedly be a great convenience to professionals living and working in the Stamford area and Westchester County. Students will be taught by the same Fairfield University faculty who bring to the classroom a wealth of experience from working at the top accounting firms, banks and respected financial service institutions.” J Dr. Dawn Massey, chair of the accounting department at fairfield, and Ken Seel of KpMG. Classes start on May 18 at the Stamford site, which is located a short drive from both the Merritt Parkway and downtown Stamford. The AACSB-accredited Dolan School is accepting applications for September enrollment in the parttime program designed to prepare individuals for advancement in the field of taxation. The MST program is geared to a wide range of students, from recent graduates with bachelor’s degrees in accounting or finance to more experienced professionals who want to advance their careers. It is conceived to be especially useful for industry managers, executives, financial service professionals, public accountants, and others seeking a specialized education in taxation. Ken Seel, the Stamford Office Managing Partner at KPMG said, “In today’s world of complex tax issues, providing tax compliance or consulting services requires a high degree of tax technical knowledge. Earning an MST will provide individuals with the necessary depth and breadth of knowledge that is typically not available in an MBA or undergraduate program.” Students will be taught a variety of tax authorities (statutory, judicial, and administrative) and other vital resources to critically consider and resolve complex tax issues. The program requires students take 10 three-credit courses, of which seven are required. Students can use their three elective choices to customize the program to suit their needs. For example, students can opt to take as their electives courses that may enable them to fulfill the education requirements for certification as Certified Public Accountants in New York State, as well as in Connecticut. Classes offered at the Stamford location and Fairfield’s main campus will vary each semester. Classes are held for the convenience of working professionals, generally in the evenings. Contributed photo uan Hidalgo ’09 knew Sichuanto, where students can without a doubt that witness the world’s largest he wanted to study Buddha statue. The academic abroad once he was in excursions are considered to college. The decision of be an essential element to where to study abroad was the study abroad experience easy. “I knew I wanted because students can learn to go to China from the about China through firstvery beginning,” he said. hand experience. Hidalgo, an international Having been on three of the business major, spent four trips, Hidalgo remarked both the spring and fall that the experiences were semesters of ’08 in Beijing intense. “You have to interact through The Beijing with everyone,” he said. “It’s Center for Chinese Studies Juan hidalgo ’09 with the Great Wall of china at his back a tough adjustment at first, (TBC), which was orgabut the best situation in which nized through the Loyola University of Chicago, a sister to learn.” Stressing the need to become involved with the program of Fairfield University. community, Hidalgo said that the locals he met were very The experience was unforgettable for Hidalgo, who, in welcoming. Taking intensive Mandarin Chinese language addition to taking courses, was able to travel throughout courses helped communication. Hidalgo initially took China and experience every nuance of the rich culture. Chinese at Fairfield and moved to more rigorous courses “Everyone I know who went to China absolutely loved it once he was abroad. and would go back in a minute – myself included,” he said. With China becoming more and more important to the TBC organized all aspects of Hidalgo’s semesters abroad, global economy, the benefits of DSB students studying including intense language training, academic courses, in Asia are great, as Hidalgo discovered. Now back at immersion with both Chinese and visiting students, and Fairfield, he is writing his senior theses on “Guanxi” a many trips. Examples of travel included the Silk Road, central concept in Chinese business society. He noted that the ancient international trade route between Europe more and more students were recognizing the benefits of and China; Guilin, a scenic destination in South China, studying in China and hoped that it’s popularity as a study Yunnan, where students can travel participate in the abroad experience would grow. As he can attest, the culChinese Spring Festival and New Year with the locals; and tural, social, and academic experiences were unforgettable. Contributed photo first Selecteman Kenneth flatto Contributed photo Jesuit MBA national day of service The DGBA chose to host a can drive in an effort to help those within the Fairfield community who are struggling during difficult economic times. Lisa Muehlbauer, a member of DGBA and organizer of this event said, “a can drive is a great way to involve all students in an effort to help the community while practicing the Jesuit Values that Fairfield University was founded upon.” The can drive took place from April 6 to April 25. Marshall adams, Senior Vice president of new Member business and Strategic planning, Diane Kremheller ’11, president of the accounting club, tom curry ’11, Vice president of the accounting club and Stephen childs, assistant controller Contributed photo T he Dolan Graduate Business Association (DGBA) recently sponsored a can drive to benefit Operation Hope, a local food pantry, as part of the Jesuit MBA National Day of Service. 4 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob www.fairfield.edu/dsob 55 Update New Advisory Council member Hugh Davis ’95 Spring 2009 H Investment research challenge tudents took part in an exciting investment competition for the first time this past year. The Investment Research Challenge (IRC), sponsored by The New York Society of Security Analysts (NYSAA), is a six-month educational initiative in which leading industry professionals teach business and finance students how to research and report on a publicly traded company. NYSAA, an independent forum for the investment community since 1937, is a non-profit educational organization with over 11,000 members committed to the promotion of best practices and the highest professional standards in the investment industry. This is their seventh year sponsoring the IRC. Contributed photo ugh Davis ’95 jumped right into new projects as the latest Advisory Council member for the Dolan School of Business (DSB). “I feel honored to be a member of the Advisory Council,” said Davis. “Dean Solomon and the rest of the Advisory Council are an amazing group of accomplished professionals, all with a strong desire to share their wealth of experience with Fairfield.” Davis had been visiting the DSB as a guest lecturer for several classes throughout the years, such as Dr. Winston Tellis’ internahugh Davis ’95 tional information systems course on globalization. “Hugh was invaluable in presenting a detailed view of the realities of doing business in a developing country. He spoke about the cultural adjustments his firm had to make, and the difficulties of keeping employees in an intensely competitive environment,” Dr. Tellis said. Davis is a co-founder of Greenfield Online, an independent provider of Internet survey solutions to the global marketing research industry. Hugh joined Greenfield Consulting Group in 1992 in an internship program, and in 1994 cofounded Greenfield Online/Ciao Surveys with Andrew Greenfield. The company was a true industry pioneer at the time, and one of the first to use the Internet to conduct marketing research. With Greenfield’s entrepreneurial spirit and vision in the Market Research industry paired with Davis’ passion for technology, Greenfield Online was destined to be successful. Davis has been part of the executive management team since 1994 and has played significant roles in growing the business from a two-person start-up to a successful 600+ employee, publicly-traded company (Nasdaq: SRVY) and the ultimate acquisition of the business by Microsoft in the fall of 2008. S Students win trading competition By Nina Riccio Fall, 2008 will arguably go down as the most volatile time in the history of the financial markets. Despite the wild ride, one that included stocks plunging and global currencies fluctuating tremendously in value, a team of Fairfield University business students handily won the recent annual month-long, real-time Global Forex Trading (GFT) competition. Hosted by GFT and Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School, the contest pitted 300 participants from 16 schools from three nations. The team had the highest average growth among the competing schools. Fairfield was also the only team to have a positive average percent return collectively. GFT provided each competing student with a simulated trading account of $50,000. Students used their artificial funds to invest in global currencies using real-time data with the goal of increasing their accounts as much as possible over the course of the competition. Contributed photo Davis’ first project as a DSB council member will involve organizing a panel presentation of local entrepreneurs. The event will showcase the intricacies and merits of entrepreneurship and how students can use their business skills to pursue careers not just in Wall Street, but also through their own business ventures and innovations. “We’ll have a lot of really interesting people participate in it,” said Davis. “I’m excited to see how it turns out.” With 140%, Patrick Hogan, a junior from West Springfield, Mass., had the highest rate of return on the Fairfield team. Understanding how negative events impact the markets, he kept his eye on GFT’s live news feed and read the currency financial reports and morning briefs that were provided by Brian Jennings, executive director of Foreign Exchange Distribution at UBS Investment Bank, a mentor to the team. His first trades were based on the initial proposed bailout bill. “I tried to buy and hold any and every U.S. currency pair. I guessed they would increase in value because the bailout would help the value of our currency,” Hogan said. When (the bill) didn’t pass, I canceled them because I thought they would go down and I already made a huge gain. But in fact, I was up 60% in my first couple days of trading.” He adopted the same philosophy when the bailout bill was voted on the second time, and it paid off again. He finished 13th overall in the individual competition. All in all, Hogan found a lesson in going with his gut “I learned to trust myself to make the right calls and to use my common sense,” he said. “I also had a little luck on my side.” Connecticut Hedge Fund Association By Meg McCaffrey he Charles F. Dolan School of Business and The Connecticut Hedge Fund Association came together to present a fall symposium dissecting the historic credit market crisis on Wednesday, Nov. 12, at Bloomberg’s corporate headquarters in New York City. Entitled “The Credit Market Crash of 2008: Dawn of a New World Order,” the post-election symposium brought together prominent banking leaders, top fund managers, and inf luential financial leaders in a setting that fostered constructive dialogue and foresight on the direction the financial industry is headed since it was rocked by great upheaval. Discussion centered on the global financial crisis, the new financial world order and investment opportunities in a post crisis world. Duncan Niederauer, chief executive officer of NYSE Euronext, delivered the keynote address and offered an overview of the topics discussed. Weighing in on the pressing matters impacting the economy was J. Tomilson T Hill, president and chief executive officer of the Fund of Hedge Funds Group, vice chairman of Blackstone; Andrew White, CFA, portfolio manager, Southridge Capital; Steven Zamsky, managing director, Pequot Capital; Blythe Masters, managing director and chief financial officer of J.P. Morgan Chase Investment Bank; and Brian Ruane, head of Financial Institutions, The Bank of New York Mellon. The Dolan School has collaborated on other events with the Fairfield-based Connecticut Hedge Fund Association, an educational and networking forum for stakeholders in the Connecticut hedge fund industry, including a seminar held at the New York Stock Exchange in 2006. As with other Dolan School-Connecticut Hedge Fund conferences, it proved to be a prophetic discussion. Interestingly, the panel discussed the tremendous growth of the Credit Derivative Market, as well as systemic risks and whether financial systems were equipped to handle crises. “The entire goal of the IRC is to educate and give real world experience to the next generation of financial professionals. Local colleges in NYC were the first targets but as the Challenge has grown in recent years, we have reached out to include other schools in the surrounding area,” said Brian Stype, an employee of NYSAA, Fairfield graduate, and the person who introduced Fairfield to the IRC. The Fairfield team consisted of MBA students Jason Majewski and Sveta Pasquale, and undergraduate students Hannah Kim, Bretton Hunchak, and Michael Olsen. All of the university teams studied the same company: Phillips-Van Heusen. “What’s nice about this challenge is that students meet the management of the company; that’s a very rare opportunity, especially for a large company,” said Dr. Katsiaryna Salavei, assistant professor of finance and the faculty advisor of the challenge. “This year, Emanuel Chirico, CEO of Phillips-Van Heusen, presented to the students and answered questions for an hour. This type of exposure is hard to come by simply taking finance classes,” said Stype. “The biggest benefit for students is the real world experience they receive throughout the competition. Each student is putting in up to 100 hours just on the written report, and taking the role of an analyst in their research, report writing, and data collection. The students also receive guidance from a professional mentor, who is a practitioner in the field,” said Stype. “It’s very student-driven,” said Dr. Salavei. The faculty advisor spends time with the team, but the momentum comes from the students. 6 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob www.fairfield.edu/dsob 75 Update New Advisory Council members at the Dolan School Hugh Davis ’95 Greenfield Online Executive Vice President B.S. in Economics, Fairfield University. Hugh Davis is Executive Vice President, and co-founder of Greenfield Online. Mr. Davis is an active participant in the research industry and has published numerous papers and is often an expert speaker on online data collection and new market research. See story on page 6. Michael Ferrante ’90 MultiPlan, Inc. Executive Vice President and Chief of Operations B.S., Mathematics, Fairfield University. MBA, Finance and Marketing, New York University’s Stern School of Business. Michael Ferrante is the Executive Vice President, Chief of Operations at MutliPlan Inc., the nation’s oldest and largest supplier of independent, provider network based cost management solutions in the healthcare industry. In his current role, Mr. Ferrante oversees all aspects of traditional operations departments, all Business Process Outsourcing, and all aspects of developing and maintaining MultiPlan’s national network of healthcare providers. William F. Greenwood ’81 Meridian Asset Management Managing Director B.A., Economics, Fairfield University. MBA, Northeastern University. William F. Greenwood is an accomplished and well-respected financial industry execWilliam F. Greenwood ’81 utive with 23 years experience and a successful record of business development, portfolio management, and trading. In 2006, Mr. Greenwood was recruited by The Carlyle Group as part of a management team to provide leadership in the development and implementation of a permanent capital vehicle where he served as a Managing Director. Prior to joining Carlyle, Mr. Greenwood served as First Vice President in the Global Treasury Department of Merrill Lynch where he managed the firm’s liquidity and collateral portfolios. He also worked closely with the global funding team in managing the risk of Merrill’s debt portfolio. Mr. Greenwood served on Merrill’s Asset and Liability Committee ALCO). Neal D. E. Griffin ’91 Institutional Strategy and Investment Group, Inc. Senior Managing Director Head of Institutional Equity Trading B.A., Economics, Fairfield University. Mr. Griffin has been with ISI for 16 years and has been instrumental in expanding the company from 19 to 120 employees. ISI is a macro-economic based research firm and also has a separate money management group that manages over $1.5 billion for individual investors and endowments. Paul LaViolette ’79 Venture Partner SV Life Sciences B.A. in Psychology, Fairfield University. MBA, Boston College. Paul LaViolette joined SVLS in January, 2009. Paul was most recently Chief Operating Officer at Boston Scientific Corporation (BSC), an $8 billion medical device leader. During his 15 years at BSC, he served as COO, Group President, President-Cardiology and President-International as the company grew revenues over 20 times. Paul integrated two-dozen acquisitions and led extensive product development, operations, and worldwide commercial organizations. He served on the boards of Urologix, Percutaneous Valve Technologies and Advarned, and currently serves on the boards of TranSi, Direct Flow Medical, Conceptus and DJO Surgical. Christopher J. Stephens, Jr., CPA Barnes Group Inc. Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer B.S. in Accounting, King’s College. MBA in Corporate Finance, Virginia Tech’s Pamplin School of Business. Certified Christopher J. Stevens, Public Accountant. Jr., CPA Chris Stephens is Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Barnes Group Inc. Mr. Stephens has more than 20 years of experience with Fortune 500 companies, including Honeywell, the Boeing Company, Allied Signal and Ingersoll-Rand. Most recently, he served as President, Honeywell Consumer Products Group (CPG), an automotive products business with leading brands such as Prestone, FRAM, and Autolite. Prior to CPG, he was the CFO of Honeywell’s Transportaion Systems business. He also held senior leadership roles at Boeing Company and Allied Signal. Spring 2009 Breathing more life into Norwalk: MBA student Michael Moore discusses how to revitalize a city ichael Moore, a current MBA student, knows “if you build it, they will come.” A more exact phrase might be “if you revitalize a city, the people will move in to populate, visit, and work in it.” That is Moore’s mission as Senior Project Manager for Development at the Norwalk Redevelopment Agency – to help make the city of Norwalk, Conn, a welcoming city to visit, live, and work. Moore graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1997 with a double major in political science and economics. He received a Master’s of Public Affairs also from UConn in 1999. He began his MBA work at the Dolan School of Business in 2005 and expects to graduate in 2010. “It’s very convenient for me to take classes at Fairfield because it is so close to where I work,” he said. Created in 1950, the historic city of norwalk, conn. the Norwalk Redevelopment Agency is a quasi-public agency that is charged by the local government with revitalizing Norwalk’s economically distressed neighborhoods. To achieve such revitalization the Agency administers a number of projects and program designed to foster mixed-use development in close proximity to transit, preserve Norwalk’s supply of affordable housing, and expand commercial business opportunities. The Washington Street Historic District, located In South Norwalk, also known as SoNo, is an example of a successful Agency-led neighborhood revitalization project. Throughout much of the 19th and 20th centuries SoNo was home to a variety of industrial activities. However SoNo fell into distress as much of the industrial activity left the region following World War II. In the 1980s and 1990s the Agency teamed with private-sector developers to preserve and redevelop the historic buildings that are characteristic M of SoNo. The neighborhood is now a beacon of economic activity and is a retail and tourist destination that is home to the Norwalk Maritime Aquarium. Affordable housing is another area in which the Agency spends a significant amount of time. “It’s always a challenge to provide affordable housing,” said Moore. People often can’t afford to live in Norwalk, so the Agency provides down payment and closing cost assistance to first-time homebuyers through the Norwalk Homeownership Program. The Agency also administers the federally funded Community Development Block Grant Program, which provides funding to local nonprofits and social service providers to implement programs including financial literacy, drug prevention education, and after school programs that assist the community’s low and moderate-income residents. Courses at the Dolan School have helped Moore develop new skills that he can use in his work at the Agency and in many other ways. One course he took, “Contemporary Topics in Management, Strategy for NonProfit Organizations – Habitat for Humanity,” conducted an analysis of the strategic plan of Habitat for Humanity of Costal Fairfield County and made recommendations that could help the organization run more efficiently and effectively. That course was helpful for organizations that have a lean budget, small staff, and big goals, very similar to the Norwalk Agency. Moore’s work, combined with business courses at Fairfield that will help advance his goals at both the Agency and beyond, keeps him busy. But, a city never sleeps and Moore’s work enables people to both work in and enjoy the historic city of Norwalk. Photo by J. Santopatre 8 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob www.fairfield.edu/dsob 95 Update Peer mediation program launched Students and faculty from the Business School joined forces with the entire University to create the Conf lict Resolution Consortium (CRC), which, in turn, developed a student peer mediation program. Twenty-three students were trained as peer mediators in January and are now currently available to assist in resolving various campus conf licts. “The program is a wonderful example of crossdivisional efforts here at Fairfield,” explained Dr. Lucy Katz, coordinator of the program and (retired) professor of management. “Conf lict is inevitable on campuses and in life,” she continued. “Mediation is now viewed by many as the preferred way to resolve disputes. That is because the process is fair and neutral, and empowers the disputing parties to design their own, highly f lexible, solutions to conf lict.” Spring 2009 Faculty in the news Dr. Mousomi Bhattacharya, associate professor of management, was quoted in the Westport Minuteman in the article “Can You Grow Your Business in a Down Economy?” “Since this has affected so many areas of the economy,” Dr. Bhattacharya said, “it will take time to come out of this – one to two years. But small businesses can survive if they make changes.” Dr. Norm Solomon, Dean of the Business School, was profiled in the Nov. 2 Easton Courier on the eve of his New York City Marathon run as a member of Team for Kids, a group of more than 1,000 runners who raised close to four million dollars to support the youth services arm of New York Road Runners. S force the bonds of the entire school community as well. It signals a major move towards creating a more peaceful campus atmosphere.” “Conf lict resolution, serves two important, complimentary needs,” stated Tom Pellegrino, dean of Students. “First, it is an effective way of giving people ownership in the resolution of a dispute. Appropriately administered, it has the unique benefit of having people focusing on the merits of the issue rather than on people and personalities. Second, the CRC can be a source for professional development focused on enhancing our skills in terms of communicating with each other, of solving problems, and of understanding and promoting diverse and disparate voices.” Contributed photo Dr. Mousomi Bhattacharya Dr. Norm Solomon Dr. Paul Caster, associate professor of accounting, presented his manuscript, “Enforcement Release Evidence on the Audit Confirmation Process: Implications for Standard Setters,” at the American Accounting Association’s annual meeting in Anaheim, Calif., in August. His co-authors Dr. Paul Caster are Dr. Diane Janvring of Iowa State University and Dr. Randy Elder of Syracuse University. Dr. Xin James He, professor of information systems & operation management, was interviewed for the article “10 Questions on the Chinese New Year,” published in the Connecticut Post, Jan. 25. The article dispelled some American myths about the holiday and discussed how the holiday is celebrated in China. In the business world, graduates with skills in mediation are greatly valued. “Mediation is Mediation is a volunpart of what, in gentary process. A neutral eral, is called ADR, Students gain skills and solve conflicts through peer mediation. mediator helps those in or Alternative Dispute conf lict resolve their issues. It is informal, confidential, and Resolution. Other forms are arbitration, mini-trials, and fast. The parties to the conf lict make all the key decisions. settlement facilitation,” said Dr. Katz. “Businesses such They create their own solutions, with the mediator’s guidas GE and Microsoft have departments to encourage use ance, and at any point can refuse to participate or refuse of ADR, instead of litigation. The government uses it in any suggested solution. It’s a good way to improve relationregulatory disputes and as an adjunct to traditional judicial ships, improve communication, and resolve tough conf licts. proceedings.” Susan Clancy ’11, an accounting major and one of the students trained in mediation said, “I wanted to participate in the program because I was a mediator in high school and witnessed how valuable it can be. I have already begun to use them in everyday conf licts and I have seen a significant change in the way I approach problems, and am now more open to listening.” Vin Ferrer, a freshman who completed the training, said, “The new program helps not only to strengthen individual relationships among the Fairfield community, but to reinThis year, the CRC spent time networking and speaking to student groups about the services they provide. Next year, as word spreads, they will work with more and more campus members to resolve areas of conf lict. “I hope many students use this program. Mediation can help eliminate the tough conf licts that keep us all from realizing our real potential. People find it a truly transformative experience,” said Katz. Dr. James He Debra Strauss, assistant professor of business law, received the Best Paper Award for her paper, “Reaching Out to the International Community: Civil Lawsuits as the Common Ground in the Battle against Terrorism,” which she presented at the annual meeting of the North East Debra Strauss Academy of Legal Studies in Business in Cooperstown, N.Y. on May 3, 2008. Her paper has been accepted for publication in the Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law, volume 19(2). Strauss presented the paper “The Application of TRIPS to GMOs: International Intellectual Property Rights and Biotecchnology” at the Annual Conference of the Academy of Legal Studies in Business in Long Beach, Calif., on Aug. 14. The paper proposes a model of intellectual property rights and international trade as a means to promote constructive innovation for the public benefit by encouraging socially responsible technology. The Hartford Courant interviewed Dr. Michael Tucker, professor of finance, for an article on teaching business students in the midst of the Wall Street meltdown. “The focus for business schools now is dealing with how the economy crumbled in the first place and how a similar crisis can be avoided. Dr. Katsiaryna Salavei, assistant professor of finance, presented a paper, “Teardowns and McMansions: The Value of Altering Hedonic Characteristics,” at 2009 Allied Social Science Association (ASSA) meeting in San Francisco, Calif. Dr. Salavei was also interviewed for an article, “Wary Dr. Katsiaryna Salavei Holiday Shoppers Reaching for Cash Instead of Credit Cards,” published Dec. 18 in the Fairfield Minuteman. The Minuteman Newspapers also turned to her for a Nov. 13 story on what President Obama should do to help the stalled economy. Finally, Salavei presented her research paper “Litigation risk and market reaction to restatements” at the 2008 Financial Management Association meeting in Grapevine, Texas. The paper is coauthored with Joseph Golec and John Harding, both of the University of Connecticut. Dr. Michael Tucker Dr. S.N. Lee Wingate Dr. S.N. Lee Wingate, assistant professor of marketing, presented “Preserve Self or Impress Others: Mortality Proximity and Guilt Advertising” at the Association for Consumer Research Annual Conference in San Francisco in October. The abstract will be published in Advances in Consumer Research, volume 36, 2009. 10 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob www.fairfield.edu/dsob 11 5 The Charles F. Dolan School of Business Update NoNprofit org. U.S. poStage fairfielD UNiverSity paiD SPREAD THE WORD! our research reveals that word of mouth endorsements from current students and alumni play an influential role in encouraging prospective students to learn about our programs. Most new students report initially learning about the graduate programs at the DSb from a friend, family member, co-worker, or colleague. We appreciate the fact that many student and alumni generously share their experiences about the positive influence that their business education has had on them. Graduate Information Session for the Dolan School of Business Tuesday, July 21, 2009 5:30 - 7 p.m. On campus at the Kelley Center for more info: www.fairfield.edu/grad (203) 254-4184 toll-free: (888) 488-6840 e-mail: www.gradadmis@mail.fairfield.edu 1073 north Benson road Fairfield, Ct 06824-5195 Message From the Dean: Dear Friends, The beginning of 2009 has been a turbulent time for everyone as we monitor the changes occurring both in Washington D.C. and on Wall Street. Economic projections are dim for the next several years and we are all thinking about what the future holds for us. Analysts are saying that one of the best courses of action people can take is to plan as far in advance as possible and to invest in the long run. The same is true for education. Focusing on the future and concentrating on building careers for life is essential in our uncertain market economy. We at the DSB are eager to help guide, advise, and prepare our students to make the best choices at school and for their future long-term careers. In this past academic year our faculty, staff, and alumni have undertaken many new endeavors. I hope you will enjoy reading about the latest news of our school, the top-notch research of our faculty, and the interesting projects our undergraduates and graduates have completed both inside and outside of the classroom. Sincerely, Update Update is published twice a year by fairfield university for students, alumni, benefactors, and friends of the charles f. Dolan School of business as well as selected corporations. Editorial offices are located at: Fairfield University 1073 North Benson Rd. Fairfield, CT 06824-5195 eDitorial boarD Dr. Norman Solomon Dean, Dolan School of Business Carolyn Arnold Update Editor Meg McCaffrey Writer Jean Santopatre University Photojournalist Ed Ross ’86, M.A.’89 Senior Designer, Printing & Graphics Services 29168_4/09 Norman A. Solomon Dean, Charles F. Dolan School of Business 2 www.fairfield.edu/dsob