David Souder


UConn’s Innovation Quest Turns Students into Entrepreneurs

UConn Today – Just a year ago, Amelia Martin ’23 (CAHNR) was an undergraduate student with a great idea for creating an eco-friendly surfboard, but little idea how to bring it to the marketplace.

Today she is an entrepreneur and the owner of Mud Rat, a company creating organic surfboard cores from the mycelium of mushrooms. The material can replace Styrofoam, which produces toxic dust, and takes hundreds of years to decompose.

Read article


Innovation Experts Make Their Pitch for Quantum Technology, Unleashing Excitement, Urgency

UConn Today – If Connecticut is afforded the opportunity to develop the most advanced technology in the world—technology that would save lives, create jobs, strengthen the economy, and revolutionize many industries— how could it not vigorously pursue it?

That was the question that Rajeeb Hazra, an international quantum-computing expert, and the keynote speaker at Thursday’s “Imagining a Quantum Future’’ event, posed to the audience of more than 150 academic, government, and industry leaders.

Read article


School of Business Welcomes Four Experienced Faculty to its Ranks

UConn Today – The School of Business has added four faculty members to its ranks, all with extensive classroom experience. The new professors include a trio of OPIM experts, who will be based in Stamford, and a former LEGO-company innovator who is joining the Marketing Department.

Read article


Management Professor Nora Madjar Appointed Associate Dean

Management professor Nora Madjar has been named Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs. (Contributed photo)

Professor Nora Madjar, a 20-year faculty member who has won multiple teaching awards and is a leader in curriculum development and review, has been appointed Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs at the School of Business. Continue Reading


Connecticut Magazine Honors CCEI’s Jennifer Mathieu as Influential, Inspirational

CCEI executive director Jennifer Mathieu, above, in the Graduate Business Learning Center in Hartford.  Mathieu was recently named one of Connecticut Magazine's 40 under 40 (Nathan Oldham / UConn School of Business)
CCEI executive director Jennifer Mathieu, above, in the Graduate Business Learning Center in Hartford. Mathieu was recently named one of Connecticut Magazine’s 40 under 40 (Nathan Oldham / UConn School of Business)

As the executive director of the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CCEI), Jennifer Mathieu has helped some 500 startups thrive.Continue Reading


UConn’s EMBA Program Ranks No. 20 in the Nation

Shot of a mature businessman using a laptop in a modern office
(iStockphoto.com)

The UConn Executive MBA program is among the most elite in the nation, ranking among the Top 20 programs of its kind, according to Fortune.

The EMBA program earned its high ranking because of its ability to attract top students, its outstanding reputation among companies, and its alumni representation in senior management of Fortune 1000 companies.

The 2022-23 Best EMBA ranking puts UConn’s program at No. 20 out of the 55 programs that the publication ranked as outstanding.

“Our EMBA program was designed to cater to the unique needs of mid-career executives, who already have high level skills, and are looking to round out their experiences,” said David Souder, Associate Dean of the School of Business and former Academic Director of the program.

“We’ve maintained high admission standards in the program, and it isn’t unusual for our EMBA students to also have advanced degrees in nursing and law or to have already earned a doctorate,” he said. “Furthermore, our program has been thoughtfully designed to enhance collaboration between expert faculty and mature students. Our students learn both from their instructors but also from each other through team projects.”

Professor Stephen Park, who is currently the Academic Director of the EMBA program, said the program has a proud and enthusiastic alumni community that supports its current students.

“We deliberately leverage those close working relationships, and that’s something our students welcome,” Park said. “We don’t have specialized tracks in our program, but rather we offer soup-to-nuts exposure to what top leaders in an organization need to know.”

The UConn EMBA program is now accepting applicants for the Fall 2023 class. For more information, please visit emba.business.uconn.edu


Management/Entrepreneurship Faculty Among Nation’s Top 10 Scholars

"Woman reading newspaper, canon 1Ds mark III"
(istockphoto.com)

Professors in the Management & Entrepreneurship Department are ranked among the Top 10 in the world for research productivity and high-quality scholarship.Continue Reading


Business Leaders Recommend Their Favorite Business Books of 2021

Winter tea. Winter books. A cup of hot tea, books, Christmas shining garland on a wooden background. Winter holidays.
(istockphoto.com)

The holiday season provides a good opportunity for busy executives and students, alike, to catch up on some of the best books of the year. We asked prominent Connecticut business leaders and members of our UConn faculty what business-focused book they would most highly recommend from 2021. Here are their selections:

Continue Reading



Executive MBA Program Offers New, Convenient ‘HomeLink’ Option for Fall ’21

Online Education. Young Black Female Studying Online From Home With Laptop Computer And Headset And Taking Notes To Notepad, Enjoying Distance Learning, Watching Webinar In Internet, Copy Space
(istockphoto.com)

UConn’s popular Executive MBA program is launching a ‘HomeLink’ option this fall that will enable students to participate in some live classes from their homes and require in-person attendance one weekend every other month.Continue Reading