We are excited to announce Donald Snyder as the recipient of our Distinguished Alumni Award for 2024. A graduate of the University of Wyoming College of Commerce and Industry in 1969, Snyder has distinguished himself through an illustrious career in the banking and gaming industries and has significantly contributed to the realm of education, notably in leadership roles at UNLV. We look forward to honoring his achievements at our recognition dinner this month. Discover more about his life's work and influence by clicking here for the full release.
College of Business Provides Free Tax Prep for Wind River Reservation & Fremont County
The College of Business offered free tax preparation services this spring to Wind River Indian Reservation tribal members and Fremont County residents as part of the Wind River Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. The program was led by Jennifer Kreiser, assistant director of UW’s Low Income Taxpayer Clinic and site coordinator of the United Way of Albany County VITA, alongside Nicole Choi, director of the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic. This initiative underscores our commitment to serving our Wyoming community. To learn more, read the full release here.
COB Hosts Annual Spring Training Event
On March 12th, the College of Business held its annual Spring Training event in Scottsdale, Arizona, for our alumni and donors. This year, attendees watched a baseball game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Arizona Diamondbacks. It was a great opportunity to catch up and enjoy the game together. We appreciate being able to meet with our supporters and look forward to future gatherings!
MBA's Semester of Experiential Learning Opportunities
This semester, our MBA students went on several experiential learning trips. In January, the group went to Barcelona, Spain to get a closer look at international business and culture. Closer to home, they also toured the Capitol building in Cheyenne watching a legislative session in action to understand government processes. Additionally, the students visited the HIVIZ and Sierra Trading Post distribution centers to learn about how these companies manage operations and supply chains.
COB Speaker Series Hosts Kelly Richmond Pope
A large snowstorm didn’t stop Kelly Richmond Pope and she was greeted with a full house in the Scarlett Auditorium. Her presentation was an interesting look into how people fall into fraud and how to identify behaviors and situations that may get people caught in bad situations. She talked about how certain personalities become whistleblowers and others veer more toward committing fraud and gave us a link to an interactive game on her website that helps you learn which you are. She encourages people to speak out and has done work nationally, including a docu-series which has aired on numerous streaming channels. She met us in the atrium immediately after her presentation to sign copies of her best-selling book, “Fool Me Once” and enjoyed hors d’oeuvres with our students, faculty and staff.
Our next speaker will take place April 10th featuring Jeff Korzenik, Chief Economist for Fifth Third Bank, one of the nation's largest commercial banks. He will be speaking on the subject of "second-chance hiring" showing how people with criminal records, recovered addicts and the long-term unemployed can be not just adequate, but actually superior employees. Learn more and watch online by visiting this link.
John P. Ellbogen $50k Entrepreneurship Competition and Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Fair To Take Place on April 24
You’re invited to attend the John P. Ellbogen $50k Entrepreneurship Competition and Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Fair on April 24!
The John P. Ellbogen $50k Entrepreneurship Competition is a student competition open to all UW and Wyoming community college students. Eight teams will compete and be awarded $50,000 in Ellbogen Prize funds and $15,000 in other awards toward the development of their businesses. The eight teams come from various colleges and levels of education: one team is comprised of a UW faculty member and two UW students, three are comprised of solo UW students, one is a UW student and her partner, one is composed of four UW students and a recent MBA graduate, and two are represented by solo students from Wyoming Community Colleges.
The competition starts in the BU Atrium with a Breakfast at 8:30 am, then includes a Mentor Celebration Luncheon at 11:20 am, and appetizers during Deliberations and the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Fair (1:50-3:30 pm) for registered guests. The competition will start at 9:30 am and will wrap-up with the Announcement of Winners at 2:40 pm in BU 123.
We’re excited to host our inaugural Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Fair, taking place from 1:50-3:30 pm in the BU Atrium. This event will showcase a wide range of entrepreneurial ecosystem partners and past winner startups as exhibitors including:
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Partners
Wyoming Women’s Business Center
gener8tor
gALPHA & gBETA Wyoming
Wyoming SBDC
IMPACT 307
University of Wyoming Venture MBA Program
Wyoming Business Council
Past Winner Startups as Exhibitors
UplinkRobotics
The Confident Mompreneur
EdgeFlyte
Please register to attend any or all of the events at this link
SparkTank 2024 Finalists Ready for April 25 Showcase
Four finalists— SAFE Project, Laramie Interfaith, Stork Support and Tele-Hope—will showcase their organizations on April 25th as part of the University of Wyoming SparkTank event at the Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center. Now in its seventh year, this student-led initiative distributes funds raised by the Ethics Club and Sales Seminar students to nonprofit organizations—focusing on essential needs, such as food, shelter, safety and clothing in Albany County.
Last year's SparkTank funding not only directly supported local nonprofits, but also produced substantial economic growth within the community, including a $1.6 million economic output, $618,000 in labor income and the creation of 17.5 jobs, as reported by a study conducted internally by CBEA. This year's event promises to build on this success by promoting community engagement and enhancing the local economy. For more detailed information on this year's event, please visit the event's homepage and watch our video about the impact of the event!
Top National Rankings for UW's Blockchain and Economics Programs
The College of Business is making waves with some recent national rankings! Our Blockchain program has been ranked second in the nation by Successful Student, surpassing giants like MIT and Cornell. Meanwhile, our Economics PhD program proudly stands in the top 25, ranked 24th by TFE Times. These achievements highlight our commitment to providing top-tier education and research opportunities. To learn more about these accolades and how they were calculated visit:
It has been a busy semester for the Center for Professional Selling at the College! They achieved full membership status with the University Sales Center Alliance (USCA), marking a significant milestone for the program. Read the full release about it's significance here.
The students have also been busy competing and excelling in numerous national competitions including:
2023 Great Northwoods Sales Warm-up Competition
Annabelle Pierson (2nd place)
2024 National Collegiate Sports Sales Competition (Atlanta, GA)
Additionally, the program hosted the 2024 Cowboy Sales Challenge, in partnership with PRQ Exteriors last week on campus. The prize winners from that competition were:
Nicholas Simpson ($1,000)
Cody Hull ($500)
Sarah Drewry ($250)
Jaremy Holmes ($150)
Justice Rees ($100)
College of Business Launches Leadership Academy
We are excited to announce the launch of the UW Leadership Academy, a unique experiential course to develop students’ economic and civic leadership capabilities while providing them with Wyoming networking experiences. The Leadership Academy will begin this fall with visits to communities such as Casper, Lander and Sheridan. The program is open to all undergraduate students on campus and these students will have the opportunity to experience challenges in communities across Wyoming and learn from the next generation of leaders. For more details, please read the full announcement here.
CBEA Shares Wyoming's Economic Outlook
For the first time, the University of Wyoming unveiled a statewide economic forecast for the attendees of the Governor’s Business Forum at the end of 2023. The panel discussed the economic forecast, where we are now and what action we can take to ensure Wyoming’s economic future remains bright. The Center for Business and Economic Analysis (CBEA) provided a comprehensive economic forecast, balancing optimism with caution for the future. For a deeper dive into the economic outlook and strategies for the coming years, read the full forecast here.
Reminder to Visit Our Career Services Platform
In case you missed it, the College of Business launched a revamped Career Services website at the start of the semester. This platform is user-friendly and rich with resources, for current students and alumni. Features include personalized career paths, expert insights, networking opportunities with employers and alumni, as well as updates on workshops and events. This platform serves as the home for our College of Business Alumni Job Board. It's not just for current students; our alumni can also benefit from this resource. The job board features opportunities from our valued employer partners, offering a diverse range of positions suitable for various stages of your career journey. Check out the open opportunities at careers.uwyo.edu