A Message

My Fellow Carson Cougs,

I’ve had an amazing first year as your dean. As we got to know each other, it became clear to me that our Cougar Nation’s passion and commitment will allow us to set our sights high: the Carson College can become the business school that every state and every public university wishes it had. I am thrilled to work with our new WSU president, Kirk Schulz, featured on page four of this issue, to make this vision a reality.

President Schulz will be laying out ambitious goals for WSU this year. In the college, we’ve set goals too. At the head of the list: we aim to be the school of choice for undergraduates studying business in the Pacific Northwest. Even at the top, we will remain accessible to qualified students who will roll up their sleeves and work—whether they are the first in their family to attend college, or third-generation Cougs. This issue’s special focus on undergraduate internships and placement after graduation shows us at our best, with student success stories across all WSU campuses.

Our goals go beyond our college walls: we want to have impact on more students’ careers and lives by extending business education across WSU. We aim to do more in this area than we see in any of our peers, overcoming bureaucratic obstacles and drawing on the breadth and strength of WSU. Working with other WSU colleges to help all Cougs learn, we’ll be an engine of success for the state of Washington.

Our innovative online programs, for students who can’t get to a WSU campus, have come a long way in a short time.

Here, we expect to continue to lead the Northwest and to attract students worldwide. Industry employers and the U.S. Military are delighted by what online MBA and Executive MBA students are contributing to their organizations. Don’t miss the feature in this issue on Executive MBA graduate Raquel Bono, whom the U.S. Navy recently promoted to vice admiral and named director of the Defense Health Agency.

College faculty support the WSU mission: transformative student experiences and advancement of the frontiers of knowledge. If we do our part, Carson College scholars should be recognized by the business community of the Pacific Northwest as the number one source for research-based insights on markets, organizations, and policy. Take a look in this issue at our new faculty and where they were trained; we are serious about joining the top tier of American public universities.

These are big goals. In the Carson College we are determined to exemplify the best of American higher education. We will need your help to live up to the responsibility we’ve taken on. I look forward to meeting many more of you on our path to success.
Follow me on Twitter: @ChipHunterWSU.

Go Cougs!

Chip Hunter