Three students earned prize money to fund their original business ideas in The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s first VC-Squared competition. A part of Research Day, the “Shark Tank-esque” contest challenged students to present their ideas for products or businesses to four expert judges—each deciding whose idea was worth funding. “Our inaugural VC2 was most definitely a success. The students really carried the event with their innovative and inspiring business ideas,”...
Jason Hendrix, '09, knew something important was missing when he attended the Georgia College & State University (GCSU) basketball games as a junior. The other teams had mascots, but GCSU didn't. That's when Hendrix led the charge of the Thundercats—a rowdy, GCSU fan base comprised of Hendrix’s friends, which, in turn, lead to the creation of the university’s mascot “Thunder.” When he wasn't running cross-country or working at The Colonnade, Hendrix was a sport photographer, traveling...
In an explosion of energy, the J. Whitney Bunting College of Business and Technology (CoBT) has directed their initiatives to focus academic innovation and spur positive societal impact. Already gaining ground on their goals, the college launched two new degree programs and opened the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship this fall. “The J. Whitney Bunting College of Business and Technology community joins together to prioritize and deliver a preeminent business education for...
As technology changes, so does business education—and Georgia College’s J. Whitney Bunting College of Business is changing with it. The school is becoming the J. Whitney Bunting College of Business and Technology. The new name acknowledges the rapidly advancing role of technology in the business environment. In the future, nine out of 10 jobs will require digital skills, according to the World Economic Forum. “I am excited to announce the renaming of our business college,” Georgia...
When you think of business, you may not automatically think of sustainability. But there’s a lot to be learned in supporting locally-owned farmers and learning more about Georgia College’s sustainability efforts. “The dean and I discussed that agriculture is one of the largest industries in Georgia,” said Kari Brown, business outreach coordinator of the J. Whitney Bunting College of Business (COB). “Your local farmers’ markets are small, but growing businesses. We want the Georgia...
Dilanka Seimon’s, ’03, professors at Georgia College showed him the magic that happens when individuals are allowed to think independently. It commands respect. Now, he applies this skill to his profession as vice president of Alternative Energy for Energy Transfer, one of the largest and most diversified energy infrastructure companies in North America. During Seimon’s Honors class, Dr. Kenneth Saladin, distinguished professor emeritus and evolution theorist, would occasionally debate...
As we ring in the new year, the Georgia College J. Whitney Bunting College of Business would like to introduce you to our new Alumni Council. The Alumni Council was formed in 2021 and is led by an executive team of myself, Kyle Aldridge, president (BBA, ’99), Fred Koeck, vice president (MLSCM, ’17) and Lori Hamilton, secretary/events (MMIS, ’09). The executive team has been busy at work putting together a mission and goals for their upcoming two-year service term. The executive team...
Jackson DeFore, ’09, has primarily worked in a supportive role throughout his professional career. He served with the Army National Guard for 10 years, where he served as a combat medic and commissioned officer. Today, he uses the teamwork principles he learned in the Army National Guard and at Georgia College in his new role as deputy director for administration and finance for the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC). DeFore pursued his Master of Business Administration (MBA)...
In January of 2020, before Dr. Sandria Stephenson began teaching at Georgia College and before the pandemic changed everything, she was in the North Georgia mountains, engaging in a Holistic Educational Learning Partnerships (HELP) retreat amid the fog-covered peaks with a cohort of prospective doctorate students. Stephenson designed this HELP initiative to retreat with prospective students whom she felt were prepared to take the ultimate leap in higher education, pursuing a doctoral...
What first sparked your interest in SGA? I knew I wanted to do something more on this campus but I wasn’t really sure what that would look like. I was in a weird place in my college career right before joining SGA - I had just made a drastic change in majors and I wasn’t really sure what my next move was. I was just randomly checking my email one day when I saw an email blast saying that SGA had a couple vacant senate seats and they were taking applications. I didn’t know much about...
