Tag Archives: mccombs

Alexandria, Austin, Events, Student Life, Uncategorized

Run Austin!

3 Comments
My dog Rosie and I at the Dallas Turkey Trot sporting our rivalry day spirit!

Whenever I go home to Dallas for Thanksgiving, I love to run the YMCA Turkey Trot. The Dallas Turkey Trot hosts about 35,000 energetic runners, joggers and walkers alike. This particular year, the Turkey Trot made an attempt for a world record for the most people in turkey costumes in one place.

I love this race because it’s the perfect thanksgiving tradition: burning calories before you eat your weight in delicious thanksgiving cuisine.  It’s also a lot of fun because of all the college rivalries. Those who didn’t come in turkey outfits came in all of their collegiate paraphernalia. There are fight songs from all sorts of schools going around the crowd, but non louder than our very own “Texas Fight!” fight song.

I have been running since my junior year of high school, when I joined my school’s track and field team. I was atrocious, but I loved the freedom I felt while running. I continued to run throughout high school, and love to run recreationally in college. Continue reading Run Austin! →

Academics, Career, Paul, Student Life

Joe Paterno and Responsibilities of an MPA Student

4 Comments

I rarely post a very direct blog. Usually, my intent is to keep this column very effervescent, but this incident has left me very distraught. Perplexed even. See, it has been very difficult for me to reconcile my emotions over this event because the line of what I deem right and wrong is now hazy.

Joe Paterno, the winningest coach in FBS with 409 victories, was recently fired by Penn State for failing to report an incident involving former defensive coordinator, Jerry Sandusky.

If you have not heard, the winningest coach in D-1 football, Joe Paterno, was fired amidst a sex scandal involving an assistant coach. Paterno was allegedly notified of a sexual assault incident in 2002, reported it to Penn State officials, but failed to take further action. The assistant coach, in the meantime, had allegedly engaged in sexual misconduct for years and was even seen on the Penn State campus weeks before the scandal emerged, despite being relieved of official business nearly a decade ago.

The rub is that Paterno was fired and this angered many Penn State fanatics. Paterno is not accused of any actual misconduct; however, he was the head coach, overlooked the program, and as a result, is at least partially to blame for the scandal….right?

How does this relate to MPA? There are numerous times when certain people in a firm engage in poor practice and put the jobs of many employees in jeopardy. Nevertheless, even those who engage in poor practice in a firm are usually on a larger team and whatever work they do should be reviewed multiple times.

Yes, I said that: someone did something unethical, it was reviewed several times and it still got through.

The question is how does this happen? Are those who let such actions occur necessarily bad? I don’t think that Joe Paterno is bad… Continue reading Joe Paterno and Responsibilities of an MPA Student →

Academics, Admissions, Austin, Karen, Student Life

MPA Cribs: A “Mini Tour” of the McCombs School of Business

5 Comments
The 21st Street Entrance to the McCombs School of Business

Six floors, three buildings and top-notch classrooms and facilities – The McCombs School of Business has been the home of over 6,000 students. Personally, it is the only place on-campus where I spend my time: for classes, group projects, organizational meetings, studying, eating or just socializing with friends.

I would like to open the doors of the business school and give you a “mini tour” of the buildings’ most prominent highlights.  Welcome to my crib!

1)   “The Family Group”

Situated by the 21st Street entrance of the business school,   “The Family Group” is a sculpture designed by Charles Umlauf. Umlauf had a vision that focused on family; “the foundation upon which the world of business is built.” The plaza where the sculpture is located also has several tables and chairs where students can study or wait before their classes start.

AIM Investment Center

 

2)   AIM Investment Center

One of the most prominent facilities in the business school is the AIM Investment Center. With the LED ticker constantly running overhead, the facility provides business students the latest updates on current stock prices. The AIM Investment Center is also a part of the EDS Financial Trading and Technology Center, which is dedicated to helping MBA students and undergraduate finance majors obtain real-world experience in managing investment portfolios and developing client relationships.

 

Continue reading MPA Cribs: A “Mini Tour” of the McCombs School of Business →

Academics, Melissa, Student Life

Gratitude

Leave a comment
I am thankful for my younger brother, Stephen.

As Thanksgiving rolls around, I think we all need to take some time out of our busy/stressful lives and remember what we are grateful for. You should think about what you are thankful for every day, but sometimes we get caught up in the shuffle and forget to do so.

In the spirit of the holiday, I will tell you five (of many) things that I am thankful for.

1. Family and Friends: The clichéd response, however, an important thing to be thankful for. I don’t know where I would be without my wonderful family and friends. I am loving all of my new (and old) MPA friends and I feel so blessed to have them in my life.

2. McCombs: Did anyone see the tower in orange last week and wonder why? It was in honor of the Princeton Review’s Best Business Schools: 2012 edition. McCombs ranked No. 1 for “Best Professors!” Next class, tell a business Professor “Thank you.”

3. Laughter: Considering I have mentioned laughter in 2 of my 2 blog posts thus far, it is probably clear that it is one of my favorite things. Never discount the importance of laughing everyday. Continue reading Gratitude →

Alexandria, Events, Student Life

Spare some time to volunteer!

2 Comments
Bowling is a sport right up the athletes' alley!

One of the great things about McCombs is that they develop students into professionals while improving the greater Austin community. Serving the community is a huge part of the culture of McCombs and Texas MPA.

Just last weekend, I had a remarkable experience volunteering. I went with MPA Council to help out with a Special Olympics bowling event in North Austin. I had the opportunity to get to know four extraordinary people: Sterling, Kelley, Kyle, and Alaina. All four of them have down syndrome and live at the Down Home Ranch. Sterling and Kelley have been dating for 12 years and plan to get married in 2013, and Kyle and Alaina have been dating for a year. The four of them have been bowling for most of their lives and it  is something they are truly passionate about. The four of them are also aggies, which could have led to a sticky situation.  Luckily when I told them I was a true longhorn, Kyle came up to me and gave me a big hug and said, “It’s ok, we can still be friends.”

Volunteering at this event is an experience I will never forget. I feel that when you are at a place as amazing and exciting as UT, it’s important to remember how lucky we are. We have limitless possibilities for our future and opportunities to make a difference in the world. I love how MPA encourages us to take these volunteer opportunities to remind us what’s truly important in the world.

Companies also take this idea of building up the community around you to heart. Corporate responsibility is becoming an extremely important aspect of developing a company’s brand.

What makes this exciting is that when MPA students disperse across the world to follow their careers and continue volunteering in the community, the Texas motto of “What starts here changes the world” becomes a reality.