by Welcome to the Giving Issue: Message from Dean Fleming
Jackson Prudhon, a business finance concentration student, has put his business knowledge to use as founder and president of the Mustang Surf Club.
The club, which became active this fall, exemplifies the work-play balance that is important to cultivating a healthy mindset and experiential learning.
“I’ve never gotten out of the water and been upset,” Jackson told us. “I’m always getting out with a smile on my face.”
All the stories in this newsletter have a common through-line: how philanthropic support helps students thrive. Jackson, who is supporting himself through school, had time to create the surf club thanks to support from the William L. Chillingworth Scholarship. The Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP), which pairs students with faculty mentors to conduct relevant research, recently received generous support from alumnus Rob Pietsch, who believes in the value of teacher-scholar experience. And Katherine Johnson, recently named an Honored Alumnae, shares her motivations to create an accounting scholarship.
You also will read about our current strategic priority to modernize spaces for learning (classrooms/labs), faculty collaboration, and student services (academic +career readiness).
Donor support is essential to accomplish our mission to educate career-ready future business leaders in a polytechnic learn-by-doing environment and produce research that positively influences business and society.
I hope that sharing our stories is inspiring.
Happy Holidays.
Damon M. Fleming, PhD, CFA
Dean and Professor of Accounting
Orfalea College of Business
California Polytechnic State University