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Five Workshops & One Week: 177 Students Explore Business

Fullbridge team winners

The spring 2023 semester started off with 177 students participating in five concurrent virtual business workshops.  The week of January 18-22 was led by 70 alumni presenters and mentors in the following areas:

    • Fullbridge Professional Edge: This simulated workweek provides exposure to the basics of business and an opportunity to collaborate in teams through active learning culminating in a final presentation.
        • Special congratulations to Team Adidas for the innovative growth idea securing them each the top prize of a $300 Apple gift card! Will Croce ’25, Will Sampson ’24, Ignacio Sanchez ’26 and Thomas Foster ’26 let by cCoach Carmen! 
    • Corporate Finance & Banking: With virtual tours at top banks and overviews of corporate finance, corporate banking, and asset management, 20 students spent two days gaining a comprehensive understanding of the industry.   Opportunities to understand the application process and culture of the industry included a recruiter panel and a virtual networking event.
    • The new Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Workshop was led by Bob Allard ’91 and Michael Yatco ’06 where they discussed the entrepreneur’s mindset with 15 students working through business strategy and innovation..
    • Interview Prep: Personal branding and a core value proposition are key to successful interviewing.  60 students further developed their elevator pitch and practiced interview skills with the Center for Career Development followed by successful career tips from notable alumnae.
    • Marketing Communications & Sales: Alumni led 45 students through the practical exploration of advertising, marketing, sales, and public relations.  Teams competed in the PepsiCo Challenge, each tasked with bringing SodaStream to campus for individual use.

Many of the students participated in more than one opportunity as they worked towards Business Certificate Program completion, including the month-long Excel Tutorial offered during the month of January.
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Prof. Chu Reflects on Career at Holy Cross
Group of students with Prof. Chu
Prof. Chu with participants of the 2011 Summer Business Program.

Conor Joslin ’23, the student intern for the Ciocca Center for Business, Ethics, and Society,  interviewed Prof. David Chu upon hearing about his retirement at the end of the current academic year.

CJ: Let’s start with a little background about your pre-Holy Cross life.

DC: I grew up in Hong Kong and came over to the United States for college. I went to a small college called Anderson College, where there were 2,000 undergraduate students. Anderson College is a liberal arts institution and I majored in accounting and business, which enabled me to study accounting and business while fulfilling all of the liberal arts requirements; so I had a very well rounded education. Then I went to graduate school at Indiana University in Bloomington where I got my MBA and went on to get a PHD. I then taught at Indiana University while my wife was finishing up her medical training. After that, we decided to look around, and Holy Cross offered me a position, which I was very thankful for. My wife also got a job at what was then called the Fallon Clinic, and we moved out here. I started in the fall of 1991, and it has been a great career since.

CJ: What are your roles and responsibilities as the director of the Ciocca Center?  What are the more challenging aspects of your job? Continue reading “Prof. Chu Reflects on Career at Holy Cross”
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Ciocca Intern: Conor Joslin ’23

Male headshot

My name is Conor Joslin and I am currently a junior at Holy Cross majoring in Political Science while pursuing a Certificate in Business Fundamentals.

This semester, I am interning at the Ciocca Center for Business, Ethics and Society while taking the course Business of Sport with Doctor Robert Prior as a part of the Academic Internship Program, a requirement for the Business Certificate Program.

Throughout this semester I will be connecting and interviewing various Holy Cross alumni to learn about different career paths and how each used their liberal arts education to succeed in the business world.  Through the Business Certificate Program at Holy Cross, the multiple workshops I have completed, and the variety of clubs, there is such a vast network of successful alumni that I am eager to connect with. On a more personal level, I am very interested in the sales industry, along with some interest in real estate, which is why I am so fortunate for this opportunity to connect with so many brilliant alumni and learn about different career paths.

Take a look at these interviews by Conor!