M.B.A. Track Newsletter - August 2018

From the Dean's Desk: A Message from Mary Wagner

Since the last issue of the M.B.A.Track newsletter was published, there are many exciting things to report. Our first online cohort in the Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) in Management degree program graduated in April 2018, becoming the first online students to receive graduate degrees from Berkeley College. A second online cohort completed the M.B.A. program in August, joining four cohorts of on-site students to graduate.

Our M.B.A. Executive Speaker Series has continued with invited guests speaking to our M.B.A. students each term. During the winter 2018 semester, Joseph L. Haines, a Pennsylvania attorney, led a discussion on how sexual harassment allegations intersect with the media and the law. During the spring 2018 term, Vanessa Nazario, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, discussed with the class her career path from the nonprofit world to financial services, and to her current field of diversity and inclusion.

In addition to the Executive Speaker Series, we welcomed Milo Topic, Vice President of Operations and Chief Information Officer at St. Peter’s University, to speak to one of our classes about how power and leadership affect negotiations. The students in the Negotiation and Conflict Management course engaged in a lively discussion with Mr. Topic about how to understand and leverage advantages in a negotiation.

In May 2018, the Office of Alumni Relations held its first alumni M.B.A. networking event. Approximately 20 alumni attended at McLoone’s Boathouse in West Orange, NJ. Attendees enjoyed lively conversations, refreshments, networking, and a raffle for various Berkeley College-themed prizes.

The faculty of the M.B.A. program have been busy these past months. Dr. Vinita Ittoop was the keynote speaker at the Financial Literacy Conference held in April at Essex County College. This conference encourages financial responsibility. Dr. Ittoop emphasized the importance of gaining financial knowledge early in adulthood and building this knowledge over a lifetime. Dr. Lloyd Soobrian presented his paper “Impact of Changes in Reporting of Accounting Costs on Companies’ Shareholders’ Value and Financial Strategies” at the Vietnam International Conference in Finance in June 2018. In this paper, a multivariate regression model examines how changes in lease accounting rules impact the reporting of liabilities and how this affects shareholder value.

We are proud of our past accomplishments at the School of Graduate Studies, and we look forward to reporting many more accomplishments in the coming months. Enjoy this issue of the M.B.A.Track newsletter.

Photo of Mary Wagner.

– Mary Wagner, Ph.D.
Interim Dean, School of Graduate Studies