Mo Hussein (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
One of the first things people notice about Accounting Professor Mo Hussein is his warm personality. The second, is that he enjoys a little mischief.
“I once told students that my grandfather was a witch doctor,” he said, with a twinkle in his eye. “And some of them believed it!”
Hussein has spent his 38-year career at UConn, where he has taught thousands of students and helped to build the accounting department’s reputation as among the best in the nation. He also served as accounting department head from 1989-90 and from 2003-15, and as interim dean of the School of Business from 2006-07. Continue Reading
Nicole Jones Young (Melissa Ferrigno/UConn School of Business)
Doctoral Student Nicole Jones Young Wins Her Second Award for Research on ‘Trickle-Down Leadership’ and Inclusivity
Management doctoral candidate Nicole Jones Young has won her second prestigious award in two years for research that shows employees pay close attention to their bosses’ actions, more than their words, when it comes to inclusivity in the workplace.
“A Trickle-Down Approach to Inclusive Leadership: The Role of Supervisory Moral Identity,” was recognized by the prestigious Southern Management Association (SMA) as the top doctoral research paper focused on ethics, social and diversity issues.Continue Reading
The “Pink Tie Affair” was held at the UConn School of Business on October 16. (Nicolle Anderson/UConn School of Business)
‘Pink Tie Affair’ Spreads Message that Disease Impacts Everyone
Students, faculty and families gathered in a powerful display of reflection and hope during a breast cancer awareness fundraiser called The Pink Tie Affair.
Hosted by the UConn Chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) and Travelers EDGE, the most touching moment of the Oct. 16 evening was when members of NABA and the audience shared their personal stories of how breast cancer has taken their loved ones.Continue Reading
Businesses Should Encourage Mentoring for Women, Minorities Says Alumna, SUNY Plattsburgh Dean Rowena Ortiz-Walters ’96, ’05 Ph.D.
A photo on the wall in Rowena Ortiz-Walters’ office shows her spunky 5-year-old daughter nestled happily between her two big brothers, a big, mischievous grin on her face.
“Leadership is stamped all over her DNA. She’s feisty, competitive, strong and confident,” Ortiz-Walters says about her youngest child. “I don’t want that to ever be stripped away from her. I want my daughter, and all young women, to have powerful female role models.”Continue Reading
Experts to Discuss Ways to Increase Numbers to Improve Bottom Line
“Women in the Corporate Boardroom: A Business Imperative for American Companies,’’ is the topic of a Sept. 16 program at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford, sponsored by the University of Connecticut School of Business, the Connecticut State Treasurer’s Office and the Connecticut Forum.
Mika Brzezinski, co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, will moderate a panel of experts who will discuss various viewpoints, enhanced by their own experiences and research, in addressing the shortage of women in the boardroom.Continue Reading
Rowena Ortiz-Walters Becomes One of the Few Hispanic-Americans to Lead a U.S. Business School
Pictured: Rowena Ortiz-Walters. Photo courtesy of Quinnipiac University.
Rowena Ortiz-Walters, a two-time UConn graduate who earned her Ph.D. in 2005, has been appointed Dean of the School of Business and Economics at the State University of New York—Plattsburgh.
Ortiz-Walters is only the ninth Hispanic-American dean of a business school in the United States, according to The Ph.D. Project, a program designed to foster more diversity in corporate America and higher education administration. She will begin her new job on July 1.Continue Reading
This article first appeared in the UConn Business magazine, Volume 3, Issue 1 (Fall 2012)
The Travelers EDGE Program Builds UConn’s Business Leaders of Tomorrow
As Armando Jimenez sees it, his first lucky break coincided with some bad news for his hometown of Hartford. That was the year his high school lost its state accreditation and Jimenez received a scholarship to attend Salisbury School instead.
Located in the Northwest corner of the state, the private school offered Jimenez the chance to participate in his first entrepreneurship program and be exposed to what he describes as a “different world” than the one from which he came. More importantly, though, it gave him a reason to work hard.
“I made Dean’s List every semester,” Jimenez said. “I wanted to make sure they knew their investment in me was good.”
Jimenez has spent the last few years making good on that initial investment as a student in UConn’s Travelers EDGE diversity initiative program. A management major now in his senior year in the UConn School of Business, Jimenez is one of 23 students currently receiving a four-year scholarship, mentoring, and internship opportunities through the program.
Being accepted into Travelers EDGE, Jimenez said, was his second lucky break.
“It’s an amazing program. The interesting thing about Travelers is that this is a company that’s really investing in the career of the student,” said Jimenez, who has completed two summer internships, at Travelers Companies Inc. and PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers), through the program.
Tara Spain, vice president of the Travelers Foundation, said the program began in 2007 with a directive from the company’s board of directors.
“They wanted us to do something that was good for the community, but also good for the company,” Spain said. “We feel like we get a lot out of it. It has helped to broaden our pipelines into the company for diverse talents and we’ve been able to strengthen the Travelers’ brand on college campuses. It’s great for the company, great for the brand, and great for our employees.”
The program targets underrepresented groups or first generational college students with the goal of making them more competitive in the business world. Jimenez, who is the first person to attend college in his family and a minority who was raised by a single mother in Hartford, fits both criteria.
“Neither of those factors alone would have gained him entry into the program, however, if Jimenez hadn’t displayed the kind of motivation and commitment to his education that earned him a place on the Dean’s List at Salisbury School,” said Seanice Austin, the director of Diversity Initiatives for the School of Business and manager of the Travelers EDGE program.
“We receive about 30 to 40 applications every year and we take five,” said Austin. “It’s very competitive.”
Students accepted into the program must participate actively and maintain a 3.0 GPA, Austin said. The average GPA of the students currently enrolled is 3.3, she said.
“We want students to be able to tell their own stories,” Austin said. “Once they are accepted, I work very closely with them to make sure they have all the resources and support they need.”
Jimenez agreed, and said he is already trying to give back a little bit of what he’s received. “I grew up in the Boys and Girls Club so I know that a simple “Hi” goes a long way, especially when someone is struggling,” he said.
For that reason, Jimenez started a program his freshman year, called Brothers Reaching Our Society, that provides peer mentoring and help with academics to other male students. “The idea is to do the same for those who come behind you as those who came ahead did for you,” Jimenez said.
As Armando Jimenez sees it, his first lucky break coincided with some bad news for his hometown of Hartford. That was the year his high school lost its state accreditation and Jimenez received a scholarship to attend Salisbury School instead.
anted us to do something that was good for the community, but also good for the company,” Spain said. “We feel like we get a lot out of it. It has helped to broaden our pipelines into the company for diverse talents and we’ve been able to strengthen the Travelers’ brand on college campuses. It’s great for the company, great for the brand, and great for our employees.”
