University of South Florida Muma College of Business
 2015
USF part-time MBA ranked 11th public program in nation
The University of South Florida's part-time MBA is No. 11 among public schools in the nation in new rankings released by Bloomberg Businessweek. Overall, the program was ranked 32nd in the nation among both private and public universities, a four-spot rise from the previous ranking. Read more.
USF researchers show TV viewership data can predict presidential elections
If an acquaintance tells you he watches "The Daily Show," you might assume a lot about him based on knowing how he spends that 30 minutes in front of the TV. Using TV viewership data from Nielsen, researchers in the USF Muma College of Business built predictive models that potentially could do what so far has been elusive to pollsters and pundits alike: forecast the election outcome in swing states. Read more.  
Anti-Money Laundering: 'Accounting with Pizzazz'
The fight against illegal drugs, human trafficking, business and government corruption, and terrorism frequently starts with accounting. High-paying jobs await those skilled in this growing segment of the battlefront. CPA Kerry Myers, a Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy faculty member, is a former FBI agent (who won national bravery awards) who teaches forensic accounting. Read more about him and USF's anti-money laundering certificate program. Read more. 

Homecoming speaker series features outgoing Women's Tennis Association CEO Stacey Allaster
The branding of tennis - especially women's tennis - might bring to mind soft clapping, graceful athletes, and glamour. But, as the demographics and generations of fans and athletes change, the brand of women's tennis has changed as well. Stacey Allaster, outgoing CEO of the Women's Tennis Association, spoke during homecoming at USF about how the WTA has developed a global brand in the highly competitive sport and entertainment industry. Read more.
USF Alumni association honors business graduates 
During homecoming this year, business alumni took home three out of five awards presented by the USF Alumni Association, with former Executive Advisory Council chair and longtime Muma College of Business friend Bob McCann taking home a fourth award. Read more.
 
Jeff Vinik honored at 24th Celebration of Free Enterprise
Tampa businessman Jeff Vinik has many accolades attached to his name: business visionary, community leader, generous philanthropist. Recently, he added another: the 24th Honoree of the Celebration of Free Enterprise. Read more. Vinik will also be speaking at USF the afternoon of Nov. 5 for a sold-out event.. 
 
In Other News
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning and the University of South Florida are proud to announce a new initiative, the Bolts Business Alliance, which aims to connect business professionals year round through the Lightning. 
  • The Muma College of Business will host a Symposium of Business Student Research on Thursday, December 3, to showcase student research.  Undergraduate, master, and PhD students are invited and encouraged to create a poster showcasing their research. Students will discuss their research projects during a poster session to be held in the Muma College of Business Atrium from noon until 3:00 p.m. The event is open to the public. For more information please contact Joni Jones at jonijones@usf.edu
  • The USF Sport & Entertainment Management Program hosted students and faculty from the University of Northampton in the United Kingdom Oct. 15-19. They traveled to participate in the International Conference on Social Media in Sport held at Amalie Arena and USF. The keynote address was given by Kirsten Corio, vice president of Team Marketing and Business Operations for the NBA.
  • The USF chapter of accounting honor society Beta Alpha Psi received the KPMG "Gold Challenge" award for the sixth year in a row, one of only two chapters internationally to do so. 
  • The Finance Department hosted the third annual Florida Finance Conference on Oct. 2, bringing together scholars from all seven PhD granting institutions in Florida. Participants included representatives from FSU, UF, USF, UCF, Miami, FIU and FAU. A strong emphasis is placed on doctoral students, with a majority of the papers and discussions provided by students. This year, Alok Kumar, the Gabelli Asset Management Professor of Finance, gave the keynote talk. 
  • The Finance Department established its inaugural advisory board. Welcome to board members Mary Erwin, Ken Macoul, Yakhin B. Israel, Carlton Martin, Julio Novo, Jack Rader, Michael Schopler, Bill Sieffert, Ken Souza, Abby Suval, and Jeffrey Zurek - thank you for serving. 
  • The undergraduate and MS programs in finance have been accepted into the CFA University Recognition Program, a prestigious honor that also allots up to five scholarships for USF students to sit for the Chartered Financial Analyst Exam. 
Faculty and Staff Notes 
  • Peggy Allen joined the college as unit research administrator. 
  • ISDS Department Professor  Gert-Jan de Vreede received the Best Emergent Research Forum Paper at the Americas Conference on Information Systems in August.
  • Center for Entrepreneurship Director Michael Fountain joined the USF Institute for Advanced Discovery and Innovation, a distinguished group of USF researchers and scholars.

Alumni Notes
  • Jay Chernoff ('81, Business Administration) is now the managing broker at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Realty Northeast Branch Sales Office in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. He joined the company in August 2014 as managing broker of the Delray Beach Branch Sales Office in Palm Beach County, Fla.
  • Terry Wood ('08, MS) has joined Right Management, Florida/Caribbean in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. as an executive vice president. He will direct the company's professional talent management and career management teams.
  • Josh Kelly ('16, Executive MBA) was recently promoted to warehouse superintendent at Mosaic in Pekin, IL. Mosaic is the world's leading producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash in crop nutrition development.
Additional alumni updates here.

 Upcoming Events 
  • Nov. 5:  Sports, Business, and Philanthropy: A Conversation with Jeff Vinik, Muma College of Business Atrium, 3:30 p.m.
  • Nov. 6-7: Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy hosts the Florida Behavioral Accounting Research Symposium in BSN 1204, with papers presented by faculty and doctoral students from multiple Florida universities.
  • Nov. 12-14: Sport & Entertainment Management Family Weekend
  • Dec. 3: Symposium of Business Student Research, Muma College of Business Atrium, noon to 3 p.m.
  • Dec. 12: Fall commencement
  • Jan. 13-14: USF Sport & Entertainment Lecture Series

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