School of Business e-Newsletter - Third Edition

Spring Has Sprung and Now it’s Time to Rejoice!

As the spring semester is winding down and the school year is almost over, the School of Business would like to congratulate you on all your hard work to this point and encourage you to finish up the semester strong!

This is a very busy time, and the School of Business has been actively involved in many events. First, we participated in the Fresno Pacific University Leadership Forum 2023. This was a wonderful event in which our keynote speaker Dr. MaryJo Burchard shared information on Authentic Leadership. Two of our faculty members also presented at the forum – Prof. Paul Saldana discussed Shepherding Resilience within Organizations and Dr. Steven Starcher focused on Lessons in Business and Life from Bezos and Jesus.

Next, we celebrated the inauguration of Dr. Andre Stephens as our 14th President at Fresno Pacific University on March 31st. It truly was a joyous occasion with festivities that lasted the entire day. Dr. Stephens comes with a great deal of knowledge and compassion for Christian Higher Education, and we are thankful that he along with his family followed the call to serve our FPU community.

We continue to offer our Business Insights Video series as a way to share actionable business advice with our community and roundtable sessions to have deeper discussions regarding the topics. The 56th Annual West Coast Mennonite Relief Sale (a.k.a the MCC Sale) will take place at FPU's main campus on Friday, April 14, and Saturday, April 15 and there will be fun activities for all ages!

And finally, we are busy preparing for our Graduate Hooding Ceremony on May 5th and Spring Commencement on May 6th. We have approximately 123 students graduating this May so please keep them in your prayers as they get ready to start a new chapter in their lives!

Dr. Michelle Bradford Dean, Interim Dean, School of Business
"This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
- Psalm 118:24

UPDATE IN LEADERSHIP

Dr. Sharon Starcher will now be serving our entire undergraduate population as Undergraduate Program Director (which includes TUG & DC programs). Dr. Starcher has been active with the PMI-California Central Valley Chapter for over 10 years serving in various roles, including chapter president, and played a significant role in helping develop the local Academic Forum for college students to learn about project management and network with local PM professionals. Dr. Starcher also served as a representative for the Project Management Institute Educational Foundation, serving with an international team to promote project management for social good, specifically serving PMI regions 1 and 7 for two years.

Dr. Starcher is knowledgeable in business start-ups and has extensive experience in business and non-profit administration, grant administration, corporate training, and project development and implementation. Dr. Starcher holds a Doctorate in Business Administration with a concentration in Leadership.

WELCOME

Welcome our new Dean’s Assistant – Jennifer Dallas!

Jennifer’s passion and drive in business are founded by Christ through servant leadership and academic success. My strong work ethic, as a woman in business and leadership. Jennifer is also a Paralegal and owns her own business as a Legal Document Assistant. She was born and raised in the central valley on a ranch in a small agricultural town Le Grand, California. Living in the country was an enjoyable blessed experience as she learned and helped her father run the family business on the cattle ranch.

Having a family of diversity has molded her through strength, independence, and perseverance to strive and achieve her goals in life. Jen’s strong work ethic, values, and faith are what drive her to accomplish and succeed in life. Her passion and heart are to give back to the community serving all students at Fresno Pacific University through Christ.

Jennifer is a Fresno Pacific University Alumni who graduated in 2022 from the School of Business with her Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration with an emphasis in Organizational Leadership.

UPCOMING EVENTS

The School of Business would like to invite you to a day of service on June 3rd from 8:00 am to 11:30 am at the Central California Food Bank located at 4010 E Amendola Dr., Fresno, CA 93725. We would love to have a strong representation of FPU students so if you are interested in signing up, please email Jen at Jennifer.dallas@fresno.edu by May 15th.

*All participants will receive a certificate of participation that can be added to your professional portfolio or your resume!

SBU GRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP

Graduating soon? Want to pursue a master's in business or organizational leadership here at FPU? Well, this scholarship opportunity is for you! Learn more here!

CAREER SERVICES

The Career Development Center at FPU provides on-campus job listings, career workshops, resume assistance, internship support and so much more! Learn more here!

ACADEMIC SUCCESS CENTER

The Academic Success Center at FPU is the tutoring center at Fresno Pacific University, and we offer tutoring for students both online and in-person across FPU's five campuses! You can make an appointment, take a workshop on MLA or APA formatting or find other resources here!

BADGES

Did you know you can add a “Badge” to your resume or online professional profile to identify mastery of a specific skill? FPU has two Microsoft “Badges”; Word and Excel.

You have the opportunity to earn undergraduate transfer credit for FPU Continuing Education units completed as part of a “Badge”. Learn more here!