NSU Horizons Spring/Summer 2008

15 horizons people who give me good advice. At this point in my career, I have a wealth of experience and advice. Now it’s my turn to pass it on.” Case studies are another way the Huizenga School incorporates real business problems and solutions into the classroom. In marketing classes taught by James Barry, D.B.A., students create marketing plans for local corporations such as the Miami Dolphins and discuss case studies taken from Barry’s 25-year career with Fortune 500 companies including GE and AT&T. “My corporate experience has provided a solid background of successes and failures that add to the credibility of mar- keting concepts covered in class,” said Barry. This past fall, eight teams of undergraduate students competed in a semester-long case study project from Target. NSU’s business school was one of just two uni- versities in Florida chosen for the Target Case Study Project, which was launched nationwide this fall. In December, the teams—three from a marketing strategy class and five studying organizational behavior—presented their projects and analysis to executives from Target. The Target ex- ecutives then chose the winning team and presented them with a $3,000 scholarship to split. “The experience was amazing because it brought real-life work experience into the classroom,” said senior Robin Furman- ski, whose team won with a project titled “Design for All” that examined how Target can connect with multicultural shoppers. “We were not just learning from a book, but learning from ex- ecutives and our professors.” For graduate students who have already started careers in business, or for those enrolled at corporate clusters (where classes are taught on-site at a company), the Huizenga School employs what it calls a “workplace laboratory.” Students are encouraged to use the classroom as a place to experiment with current issues in their own businesses and careers, and course projects are designed to allow each student to relate each project to a matter in their own organization. “The workplace laboratory has been very, very meaningful for our students,” Pohlman explained. “It’s helpful to their busi- nesses because it allows them to gain insights into things in their businesses that maybe they didn’t have insights into before.” But it’s not just in the classroom—or laboratory—that Hui- zenga School students are applying learned theory to practice. For master’s degree in business administration students planning to start careers, the Huizenga School’s internship programs offer experiences with a wide range of corporations. Companies and organizations, such as DHL, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Merrill Lynch, and the U.S. Department of Commerce, have all pro- vided internship opportunities to Huizenga School students. The school’s International Field Seminar emphasizes the “world” in “real-world” education. As part of the program, 17 master’s degree in international business administration students traveled to India in March. They spent a week in the capital city of Mumbai, studying at the KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research and visiting local business organizations, such as a pharmaceutical company and the Bombay Stock Exchange. “Immersion in an alternative national setting is an extreme- ly powerful method of learning,” said Ruth Clarke, Ph.D., who, as chair of the international business programs, has spearheaded 16 International Field Seminar trips. Every Huizenga School student can learn from some of the most successful names in business through the school’s Distin- guished Lecture Series. Jack Welch, former General Electric CEO; Robert L. Johnson, Black Entertainment Television found- er; and H. Wayne Huizenga, recipient of Ernst and Young’s 2005 World Entrepreneur of the Year, have been among the speakers to take part in this lecture series. These events are designed to provide students with glimpses into the minds of successful and outstanding entrepreneurs and business leaders. Because it enables students to put their learned theory into practice, the Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship helps shape executives and entrepreneurs who shouldn’t wonder what they will do when they enter “the real world.” They’ve already been there and are prepared to take it on. n Nick Castaldo, professor, brings his experience as president of Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza into the classroom. ALAN HANCOCK IS NSU’S ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS.