Celebrating CoBPA Homecoming Events
Last week was an exciting week at UND. Along with homecoming week, we also had many CoBPA events scheduled. Alumni, and guests traveled to UND from across the country to be on campus. The CoBPA held many events on campus, a few being the Korus Distinguished Lectureship Series, the Morrison Leadership Summit, and the Accounting Hall of Fame. All of us at the CoBPA are very grateful for the faculty and staff, students, alumni, and guests who were able join us last week.
Here is a short summary of each of our four events:
Korus Lectureship Series
The Department of Economics and Finance hosted the inaugural Korus Distinguished Lectureship Series featuring Professor Bob Hall from Stanford University for his research presentation about “The Bad News about Stagnant Wages, and How to Improve Wage Growth”. The series was established by UND Alumnus, Paul Korus and is an event that the UND CoBPA is very proud of. The Korus Distinguished Lectureship Series gives the CoBPA the opportunity to invite world renowned economists to campus to speak to students, faculty, alumni, policy makers, and other community members about topics concerning public policy and national discourse.
Professor Bob Hall is currently the Robert and Carole McNeil Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, and Professor of Economics at Stanford University. Professor Hall was previously director of the Research Program on Economic Fluctuations and Growth of the National Bureau of Economics from 1977 through 2013, and has many publications. The UND CoBPA was pleased to have him on campus to speak at this special event engaging audiences a great audience at the Grodecki Alumni Center as well as a livestream online audience.
Morrison Leadership Summit
The Morrison Leadership Summit celebrated the 7th year of this exceptional symposium. This year, the day started off with a workshop for UND students on professionalism, conducted by Barry Brode, Retired Director of the UND Television Center. The workshop included a leadership session conducted by Brode, table sessions, and large group sessions to kick-off the day. After that, students went to round tables with notable alumni for a luncheon and conversations surrounding leadership as they awaited the keynote speaker for this year, UND Alumnae Linda Pancratz.
Pancratz earned her BS in business administration at UND. She graduated with honors and received honorary doctor of letters in 2014. Currently, Pancratz is the Chairman and CEO of Investment Company, Mountain Capital, LLC, and is President of ELM Family Foundation. Pancratz gave a very honest speech, explaining to students the best and the worst times that she had in her career, and how it all contributed to where she is today. Her inspirational stories were impactful for all that attended and provided a motivating message on where your education at UND take you.
Following the presentation the students attended round table sessions with distinguished leaders to finish out the day. Whitney Klym, a senior at UND in the combined program finishing her degree in Public Policy, with a minor in Political Science, while taking MPA classes as well, had a great time and was happy to attend the event. “The Morrison leadership Summit was a great opportunity for me to connect with other student leaders on campus, meet notable alumni, and learn about ways to foster my leadership skills. Overall my favorite part of the summit was having lunch with alumni who are leaders in their field. They continue to show me the possibilities that lie ahead for a UND graduate and make me excited for my future,” said Klym. A special thank you to Dale Morrison who makes the annual Morrison Lectureship Series possible.
Accounting Hall of Fame
This year, the UND Accountancy Department honored four successful alumni for their outstanding accomplishments and service contributions to the Department of Accountancy, the University of North Dakota, and society.
The 2018 Inductees honored were: Jerry Topp- Former Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Eide Bailey, Karen Thingelstad- Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Minnkota Power Cooperative, Randy Hatzenbuhler- President and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation, and Dennis E. Dahlen- Chief Financial Officer of Mayo Clinic.
The CoBPA is very proud of these accomplished alumni and all that they have achieved and the contributions they have made to the field of accountancy. Kathrine Campbell, chair of the department of Accountancy, was pleased with another great turn out. “Each year the Hall of Fame is an opportunity for our UND Accountancy community to come together to honor inductees who are exemplars for our students. In this way, it becomes a moment when we can see and celebrate the past, present, and future of our program, its alumni, and their impact,” said Campbell.
