Dear Fellow Deans,

Greetings from Garden City, New York!

These are the last hours of the fall semester. Final exams are being written by the students and the campus is serenely peaceful. The spirit of the holiday season is everywhere. We had a successful semester—ending the year on a high note. Allow me to take this opportunity to wish you all the best for the New Year. 

Rajib (Raj) Sanyal, Ph.D.

Dean

IMPACT—School Hosts Entrepreneurship Contest for High Schools

The 11th annual Adelphi Apprentice Challenge business plan competition for high school students saw Associate Dean Alan Cooper, Ph.D. , serving as master of ceremonies. The event attracted more than 230 students from 27 high schools in the Long Island and New York City area to attend and compete. Students worked on creating a marketing plan for the case study, YVote Challenge, with the goal of coming up with a fresh, new marketing campaign to launch a broad-based national "18 in ’18" campaign to get newly eligible voters registered and voting in the national elections.

ENGAGEMENT—Industry Experts Inform Curriculum Development

Serving as judges (pictured above) for the Adelphi Apprentice Challenge is just one of the many ways our alumni stay engaged with the School. Of the 11 judges at this year’s Challenge, eight were Willumstad School alumni: Gary Carpenter ’77 ; Daniel Casale ’01, M.B.A. ’03 ; Katherine Casale ’04, M.B.A. ’06 ; Scott Dimig ’06 ; Kevin Held ’87, M.B.A. ’04 ; Deborah Holland, M.B.A. ’83 ; Mark Kulewicz, M.B.A. ’85 ; and James Lubin ’79, M.B.A. ’84 . They represented a whole range of industries, from accounting to show business. Taking most of a workday to be on campus and participate in a wide variety of events is an excellent example of their commitment to the School. 

INNOVATION — Internship and Mentoring = Student Success

There are internships and then there are internships! We have added value to the traditional student internships by incorporating a mentoring element into the experience. Students doing an internship are paired with accomplished practitioners who provide invaluable advice and guidance to enable our students to fully leverage their learning on the internship. No surprise: Mentored interns are gainfully employed on graduation. The Willumstad School ensures that more than three-quarters of its students graduate having completed at least one internship. Check out the video above.