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March 1, 2010
Next Information Session at the Graduate Center: March 3
Upcoming Events:
March 10 - "Conversation" with CEO of Aqua America
March 11 - Career Development and Financial Aid Counseling Sessions
March 11 - "Experience Drexel" Evening Event
March 24 - Convocation and New Student Orientation
March 29 - Classes start this week
In this issue of Dragonfire:
- "Top 10 Again" — Here's Why!
- Last Call! March 3 Is the Final Information Session of the Season
- On March 11, Come Experience Drexel!
- Reason #12 of the Top 10 Reasons to Become a Dragon
- Late Breaking News: Sacramento Bests Philly MBAs in Annual Competition
- Drexel's Chief Financial Aid Officer to Visit Drexel on March 11
- Steinbright's CEO Presents in Hong Kong at World Association for Cooperative Education, Coming to Sacramento March 9-11
- Business/Civic Leader Randy Sater to Welcome Everyone to "Experience Drexel"
- River Cats and Drexel Dragons
- Drexel's Dean of Libraries to Visit on March 8
- March 10: A Conversation with the CEO of Nation's Second Largest Water Company
- Why Get Your Master's from the iSchool at Drexel?
- ipl2: Seeing Is Believing!
- Sacramento MBA Professor Publishes First-Time Analysis of IPO Underwriter Compensation
- News from the EdD Bureau: A Sneak Preview of the Educational Policy Concentration
- Public Health Professor Presents on His Work to Stem Urban Violence at Prestigious NIH Lecture Series and Featured on NPR
- International HRD Leader Ed Holton Wows the Crowd
- Comstock's Invites Dean Oxholm to a "Working Lunch"
- Why the Dragon?
- Drexel Brings Career Counseling Expertise Direct to Sacramento Students
"Top 10 Again" — Here's Why!
No doubt you have seen the Drexel banners flying on Capitol Mall (reproduced at left). We've received a few emails asking us "Top 10 of what?" Many things, actually! First, U.S.News & World Report ranked Drexel University fourth among the country's most innovative, up-and-coming universities. We were sixth last year in the same poll. What we are doing here in Sacramento with our Center for Graduate Studies is one of the reasons. But there's more. Our part-time MBA program — the one we are teaching in Sacramento — was ranked 10th in the country among part-time MBA programs by BusinessWeek, for the second year in a row — and first for academic quality! Our iSchool and School of Education are both nationally ranked in the top 10 again — and these two schools are offering five different graduate programs at our Graduate Center in Sacramento. Again and again we are Top Ten! Visit our Awards and Recognition page to learn more.
Last Call! March 3 Is the Final Information Session of the Season
In just a few weeks, spring term will start at Drexel University and, with it, the Master's in Business Administration and four master of science (MS) programs will be enrolling new students: Higher Education, Human Resource Development, Information Systems, Library and Information Science. Our last Information Session of winter term will be on March 3, where you can learn about these six programs as well as the Executive Master's in Public Health and innovative Certificate+MS in Engineering Management (Infrastructure) that will be offered next fall. Where will you be in two years? Come to the Information Session to see the way to your future. Sign up today.
On March 11, Come Experience Drexel!
Experience Drexel is the name we've given to the party we're hosting for those who have enrolled in our programs starting the week of March 28, or are seriously thinking about it. The event will include career counseling sessions and advice on financial aid and scholarship programs, provided by the directors of those two programs in Philadelphia; meetings with current Drexel students and Drexel faculty; and talks given by two of Sacramento's most respected leaders: Pat Fong Kushida, president and CEO of the Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce and Randy Sater, SVP of Teichert Land Co. (more about him below). You'll enjoy excellent food and drink, and talk with other working professionals who will soon be your classmates. You should already have received the invitation; if not, contact us. For those who have enrolled and are ready to get started, you will receive a Drexel hat and the permanent name tag that all of our faculty, staff, and students wear at events, identifying us all as the founding members of this special family of West Coast Dragons. The activities start at 4 p.m.; come when you can; stay as long as you'd like. Call the Graduate Center at 916-325-4600 to RSVP today.
Reason #12 of the Top 10 Reasons to Become a Dragon
Last edition, we added an 11th reason to our top 10 reasons to become a Dragon by enrolling in one of our programs this March. But many of our students reported that we missed another one: students can use the exercise room on our floor free of charge whenever the Graduate Center is open! So if you'd like to burn a few calories before dinner, or work off the lingering tension from your workday, there are locker rooms, showers, and equipment waiting for you just down the hall.
Late Breaking News: Sacramento Bests Philly MBAs in Annual Competition
Every year, Drexel's LeBow College of Business participates in the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG®)'s Philadelphia Cup Case Competition. The Philadelphia Cup is a highly realistic private equity/investment banking case study contest that will present $25,000 in awards to MBA students representing the top seven MBA programs in the Philadelphia region. The first round of the competition was a challenge to see who would represent Drexel. Eight teams entered — seven from Philly, one from Sacramento — all connected over Drexel's high-definition videoconferencing system. Was there ever any doubt who would prevail? Sacramento won! Pictured are the winners (left to right): Robert Dodge (Director of IT for Magnadyne Corp), Ryan Baker (Staff Auditor for Moss Adams), Paul Green (Director, The Self Management Institute, Morning Star Company), and Scott Freeman (Budget Forecasting Consultant, Wildlands Inc.), with David Stewart (far left), senior director, graduate programs in business, LeBow College of Business – resident in Sacramento. They all gave credit to their coach and mentor, Associate Professor of Finance Jacqueline Garner (see article below). Drexel will fly our team to Philly for the finals on April 8, where they will compete against teams representing the Wharton School, Penn State, LaSalle, Temple, and Villanova.
Drexel's Chief Financial Aid Officer to Visit Drexel on March 11
Drexel Vice President Melissa Englund, the Director of Drexel's Financial Aid Office, will be at our Graduate Center all day on March 11 — meeting with prospective and current students during the day, and making a special presentation that evening at "Experience Drexel." Drexel has lots of fellowships, scholarships and grants — including the Bridge to the Future grants for students who have been laid off from full-time work, and the incredible Yellow Ribbon Program for veterans. Come find out about them, as well about FAFSA and the different ways you can finance your graduate education. You'll learn that Drexel has financial aid staff expert in California issues ready to help you when you are applying and any time that you are a student — and who respond immediately! Don't believe it? Come to Experience Drexel and ask our students yourself.
Steinbright's CEO Presents in Hong Kong at World Association for Cooperative Education, Coming to Sacramento March 9-11
Peter Franks, associate vice provost and executive director of Drexel's Steinbright Career Development Center just recently returned from Hong Kong, where he attended meetings of the Board of the World Association for Cooperative Education and gave a plenary presentation. He reported, "Drexel's reputation as a global leader in experiential education is very evident in this gathering of universities." On Marcch 11, Franks will be in Sacramento to meet with students individually and then give a group presentation that evening at "Discover Drexel." Find out why Drexel is so highly regarded around the world, and how Steinbright can help you develop in your career.
Business/Civic Leader Randy Sater to Welcome Everyone to "Experience Drexel"
Board chair of the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. Member and past chair of the Urban Land Institute, Sacramento. Founding member and immediate past president of the Cache Creek Conservancy. Past chair of Valley Vision. Board Member, California State University, Sacramento. Advisory Board and board member, Power Inn Alliance. And, oh yes, his day job: senior vice president of Teichert Land Co. and president of Stonebridge Properties, LLC. Randy Sater will be joining us as our featured guest on March 11, to make sure you know why he thinks this is exactly the right time for you to be investing in yourself and in this region. Food will be ready when you arrive, and Randy will go on around 6:10. If you've heard him before, you know he's not to be missed. Be there!
River Cats and Drexel Dragons
The Sacramento Graduate Student Association just purchased two season tickets to the River Cats. The fact that Raley Field is just over the bridge from the Grad Center isn't the reason. Nor is it the fact that the games are fun. The reason is that Drexel is teaching the skills you need to succeed in your careers, not just the substantive knowledge; how to mix social activity with business (aka client entertainment, business development, schmoozing) is one of those skills. The Cats have 72 home games, not including the playoffs, which we know they win this year. That means one out of every four of our students will be able to take a client or co-worker or prospect out to the ballgame. Second-year student Jennifer Dzakowic (a planner with Placer County) is the inaugural Baseball Commissioner, responsible for ticket distribution. Students who start with us in March are eligible since the season begins in April. Want to take a colleague to a game? Be sure to meet Jennifer at "Experience Drexel"!
Drexel's Dean of Libraries to Visit on March 8
It's a sure sign of the high regard in which our University is held that Danuta Nitecki left her job at Yale University a few months ago to become a professor of Information Science at Drexel and dean of our libraries. She is an extraordinary librarian and scholar who led several innovative projects during her term at Yale, which focused on improving the library's support for teaching, learning, and research. In 2008, she participated in teaching evaluation of use and users of digital libraries for the International Master in Digital Library Learning program at the University of Parma, Italy. She has published in over 70 publications, given presentations at international and national conferences, and served on editorial boards, but she is an educator at heart, concerned about students and how they learn. She will be coming to Sacramento to visit with our Master of Science in Library and Information students on March 8. If you are interested in meeting her and joining our students in a special program with her, contact Dr. Toni Carbo, the head of our iSchool programs in Sacramento.
March 10: A Conversation with the Chairman and CEO of Nation's Second Largest Water Company
Nicholas DeBenedictis will be the next guest in our speaker series "What It Means to Lead: Coast to Coast Conversations with Civic and Business Leaders." He served as secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources and director of the Office of Economic Development, and his career in public service includes eight years with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, first as the assistant regional administrator for Region 3, based in Philadelphia, before being transferred to serve in Washington, D.C. His private sector experience includes three years as the senior vice president of corporate and public affairs for PECO Energy, a $4 billion nuclear utility. Today he is chairman, chief executive officer, and president of Aqua America, Inc. (NYSE: WTR), the second largest public investor-owned water utility in the country, serving three million customers in 14 states. And on March 10, he will talk informally with our students in Sacramento and Philadelphia about what it means to be a leader — what he's learned along the way, what he'd do differently, the ups and downs/pluses and minuses of living such an intense life. It's a unique opportunity — one that our students highly prize. Care to join us? Contact Drexel's Director of Recruitment Nancy Thompson and let her know.
Why Get Your Master's from the iSchool at Drexel?
A Sacramento Master of Science in Library and Information Science student weighs in.
Amy Studer is working toward her MS(LIS) at the Center for Graduate Studies in Sacramento. With a background in nursing, it may seem an unusual degree choice, but as she said, "I had to decide what I want the next 20 years of my career to be, and I was fascinated with information and how people access information." So she decided to make a career change.
Studer says she chose Drexel because it fit all of her needs. The convenience of online and on-campus course options; the concentrations and special courses of study available through the MS(LIS), specifically the iSchool's Certificate in Healthcare Informatics; the faculty and staff—all of these met her educational requirements. Most important, she says, has been the personalized experience she's received. "Drexel's done well by me," she notes. "Within a day of having confirmed my enrollment in the program, I had an advisor contact me, which is amazing. I've never had that in any of my school experiences. Drexel is committed to a higher level of service, and I appreciate that."
Apply today and discover for yourself exactly why students like Amy recommend the iSchool at Drexel. Our iSchool at Drexel is one of just 62 schools accredited by the American Library Association. The MS(LIS) is ranked ninth in the nation overall by U.S.News & World Report, which also rated the Information Systems specialty third, Medical Librarianship fifth, and the Digital Librarianship specialty sixth nationally.
ipl 2: Seeing Is Believing!
Heard about the ipl2, but don't really know what it's all about? Now see for yourself what makes the iSchool's involvement as host of this important electronic resource so special. The ipl2 is an interactive resource utilized by faculty in teaching students about digital reference, organization of information systems, and digital librarianship. All iSchool Master of Science in Library and Information Science students are connected with the Internet Public Library (IPL) at some point during their studies. The ipl2 provides students with hands-on experience in reference services and digital librarianship. This real-world application of classroom theory helps students to be better prepared for careers in information services.
The ipl2, launched in January 2010, merges the resources of the IPL and the Librarians' Internet Index — two of the most widely used library-based technological resources — connecting individuals, businesses, and society with information. The IPL has been hosted at the iSchool since January 2007 and is a research and teaching tool, as well as a public service.
Additionally, in honor of the Internet Public Library's upcoming 15th birthday on March 17, 2010, the IPL has launched the IPL 15 Things — introducing 15 of its favorite online technologies, with background information, best practices, related readings, examples of how the IPL is using the technology, and hands-on exercises.
The ipl2 video is now available for viewing.
Sacramento MBA Professor Publishes First-Time Analysis of IPO Underwriter Compensation
The faculty who teach in Sacramento are some of Drexel University's very best. Take Jacqueline Garner as an example. In her "day job" she is an associate professor of Finance in Philadelphia, teaching one of the courses in our MBA program here in Sacramento. She is a great teacher — in fact, she's a Distinguished Fellow of Drexel's Center for Teaching Excellence. She is totally invested in her students – and if you read the article "Late Breaking News: Sacramento Bests Philly MBAs in Annual Competition" in this edition about how Sacramento's MBAs stomped all over Philly's, you can see that. She's a long-distance runner, planning to run in the Boston Marathon this spring. And she's also a true scholar, researching the issues that are important and relevant to her area of academic interest and publishing in the nation's most prestigious journals.
Garner just had her paper "The Non-7% Solution" (coauthored with Beverly Marshall of Auburn University) accepted for publication in The Journal of Banking and Finance. Although regulatory guidelines have attempted to establish standard levels of underwriter compensation, Professor Garner found significant deviation both above and below these guidelines. For IPOs where the underwriter is charging something other than 7 percent, she and her co-author figured out how to explain much of the variation in compensation using characteristics of the firm and the offering. "We find evidence of a non-7 percent solution, where some underwriters (primarily middle-tier) charge less than expected and appear to be associated with firms that are more likely to retain them for future SEO business," Garner says. "While the presence of some limits on compensation may prevent abusive levels of compensation, our results are consistent with a competitive environment for smaller, better quality IPOs." She also discovered that the level of compensation at the time of the IPO is a signal of the quality of the IPO and firm performance. For example, when firms are overcharged, their long-term performance significantly underperforms the entire market's performance; and when firms are undercharged, they outperform the market, she says.
Now, all of this may be way beyond what you do in your life or where your interests are — but here's the takeaway: this is the quality of the mind, the commitment, and the teacher whom Drexel offers you in Sacramento. And if you are interested in this, send Professor Garner an email and discover for yourself that Drexel faculty really are there for our students!
News from the EdD Bureau: A Sneak Preview of the Educational Policy Concentration
As previously reported, a new concentration in educational policy is being reviewed by the University. Pending approval, the focus area would be available this coming fall. The educational policy courses emphasize leading-edge factors in educational policy making and application of policy-making skills. We believe that education professionals in the 21st century need to be grounded in education policy studies. The major threads in the five-course sequence are:
- Developing the skills to analyze existing and needed policies.
- An emphasis on educational and societal issues related to "access and equity" to the full range of educational resources within the United States and beyond.
- Positioning policy making within global contexts and forces.
- Contextualizing policy studies within the range of jurisdictional entities from local to national to international contexts.
- Threading the studies with an emphasis on United States competitiveness.
- The roles of ethics and ethical decision making in past and future policy making.
Those with questions should contact EdD program director Dr. Ed Bureau web28@drexel.edu or call the Graduate Center at 916-325-4600.
Public Health Professor Presents on His Work to Stem Urban Violence at Prestigious NIH Lecture Series and Featured on NPR
Dr. John A. Rich, a professor and department chair at the School of Public Health, presented "Wrong Place, Wrong Time: Understanding Trauma and Violence in the Lives of Young Black Men" earlier this year at the National Institutes of Health. The lecture was part of the NIH's prestigious Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series. The presentation is available online as an NIH videocast.
Dr. Rich was also featured on National Public Radio's February 9, 2010 edition of Morning Edition. Dr. Rich was interviewed by host Steve Inskeep about his new book, "Wrong Place, Wrong Time: Trauma and Violence in the Lives of Young Black Men." They were joined by Roy Martin, one of the young men featured prominently in the book.
International HRD Leader Ed Holton Wows the Crowd
On February 17th, Dr. Elwood F. "Ed" Holton III, Professor of Human Resource Development at Louisiana State University and CEO of Learning Transfer Solutions, spoke to nearly 40 human resource and training professionals and students at Drexel University. Dr. Holton introduced a radical new way to assess and improve training transfer. Specifically, he developed a cost-effective, Web 2.0 solution that HRD leaders can use to measure and enable training transfer in their organizations.
"Dr. Holton was a very dynamic and engaging speaker who shared his research and wisdom on one of the most important issues facing workplace learning and performance professionals today. His technology-based product, TransferLogix, is one of the most innovative solutions I've ever seen in the HRD industry" — said Dr. Salvatore Falletta, associate professor and associate program director for the Human Resource Development program at Drexel University.
You can view the entire event at TrainingTransferVideoPresentation.
Recruitment has already begun for the next HRD cohort in Sacramento, which will begin in March 2010. Those with questions should contact Dr. Salvatore Falletta, at salhrd@drexel.edu; or call the Graduate Center at 916-325-4600.
Comstock's Invites Dean Oxholm to a "Working Lunch"
He's our bi-coastal leader — senior vice president in Philadelphia and a member of the President's Cabinet, a resident of mid-town and dean of our Graduate Center. Tobey Oxholm is interviewed in this month's Comstock's magazine, and talks about why Drexel chose Sacramento as the place to invest $12 million and offer its top-ranked graduate programs. He believes it's exactly the right time for employers to invest in their up-and-coming leaders and for you to invest in your future. We're sure he's right. How about you? Apply to Drexel today.
By the way, Dean Oxholm — formerly the executive vice president of Drexel University in Philadelphia and now a Sacramentan leading the campus here full-time — has been elected to the Boards of the Sacramento Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce and the Metro Chamber. It's not because he's just another pretty face — it's because Drexel is active with both chambers and is a lead supporter of the Asian Chamber's Catalyst Program, Leadership Sacramento, and Metro Edge. Read about him and his accomplishments; they are pretty impressive.
Why the Dragon?
The Drexel Dragon can now be seen lots of places in Northern California — not just on the banners on Capitol Mall or in the Sacramento Bee, but on invitations to special community events held by the region's leading nonprofits and on lapel pins worn by our friends and graduates. But what is the origin of the Dragon? The answer's lost in history. The University's student newspaper, The Triangle, first used it in a headline on October 17, 1928, announcing a big win by the football team. In the body of the article, the writer only noted that "the team … has become known as the Dragons." Within a decade, all of our sports teams were called the Dragons. According to the University Athletic Department, after Constantine Papadakis became President of Drexel in 1995, he began using the dragon symbol on his business card and official letterhead — and not long after that, the Dragon became the symbol of the University. It was named "Mario the Magnificent" after a Drexel alum who was a huge supporter of Drexel, its students, and its athletic teams. Word is, it only takes Mario a half-second to fly coast to coast these days, thanks to the technology in the Graduate Center!
Drexel Brings Career Counseling Expertise Direct to Sacramento Students
Many employers are using behavioral-based interview questions. Their premise is that the most accurate predictor of future performance is past performance in similar situations. In a one-hour workshop called "Answering the Tough Interview Questions" held over dinner (Drexel provides so much food to our students!) before class one evening, Steinbright Career Development Center career counselor Bill Felty discussed the STAR (situational, task, action, result) method of answering behavioral-based questions and provided specific interviewing tips. This followed two days of nonstop, hour-long, individualized counseling sessions with our students that included evaluation of self-assessment packages and job search coaching. Ask any Drexel student, and you will find out that Steinbright is an enormously important resource to anyone seeking to advance with their current employer or to prepare for the next opportunity.
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