by Neely Borger | Apr 1, 2014 | Academics, COBA Faculty, Current Students, Faith Infusion
1. Get to know professors.
COBA’s professors are committed to equipping students to be successful in all aspects of life. By engaging and interacting with students, professors are able to build strong relationships with students that will last a lifetime. Professors are eager to help students at all times with academics, future career plans, and with their spiritual walk.
2. Connections are the key.
Start networking and connecting with ACU and COBA alumni. COBA has representatives all over the world. By making these connections, students are able to gain real insight from experienced professionals who graduated from ACU. By simply engaging with alumni, students have a great opportunity to learn about specific job industries, land internships, and network for job offerings.
3. Get involved.
COBA has many opportunities for students to get involved. They offer organizations including STAR, AMA (American Marketing Association), and Women in Business for students to get plugged into COBA’s community. Events such as Springboard and Distinguished Speakers Series are also great ways for students to make connections and learn from real life applications. Check out the student organizations you can be a part of here.
4. Seek opportunities.
COBA encourages students to constantly seek opportunities to learn and grow, in academics and in their spiritual walk. The COBA culture and community thrives on faith infusion, instilling critical values and principles for students to build their foundation on. Growth is the effect of seeking opportunities and learning in different situations. The path to success is not a sprint but a marathon. COBA encourages students to continually look for opportunities to grow and learn.
5. Finding the balance.
In all aspects of life, finding the right balance is the key to success. COBA strives to help students find the right balance for learning how to lead in your job, home, church and community. When life is well-balanced, the peace of Jesus is upon you. “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because He trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3
6. What’s the plan?
COBA encourages students to have a plan, a road-map with checkpoints that lead to their hopes for future goals. Tim Johnston and Samantha Matta are continually working with students in the classroom, as well as individually, to create a plan that is uniquely designed for each student. In the classroom, Tim and Samantha prepare students through class insertions that focus on developing students professionally, including career testing, mock interviews, and relevant projects created for students to encounter real life experiences.
7. Be a risk taker.
In the words of Bill Cosby, “In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.” Life is full of opportunities; the question is whether or not we will take advantage of those opportunities. Jesus calls us out onto the water and promises us that through faith, we will not sink. In the business world and in all areas of life, God gives us the chance to take a step of faith and walk into rough waters. With great risk comes great reward.
8. Diversify your worldview.
COBA believes in expanding students’ worldviews, enabling them to see businesses in other cultural contexts. COBA offers several study abroad programs, including Australia, Oxford, and Central America. These programs are a great way for students to experience God working through business in other cultures and to gain global experience in the marketplace. Learn more about COBA’s Study Abroad program here.
9. Confidence. Godfidence.
God has gifted each individual with the ability to create. We encourage our students to step out of their comfort zones and discover all that God has in store for them with confidence. With God, all things are possible.
10. Believe in your purpose.
Each student is on a journey, discovering his/her own gifts and passions that can be used to write their story. We encourage students to find their passions; soon those passions will lead them directly to their purpose. Every student has a story to write, a calling to live out. COBA wants to provide the community and culture that empowers and enables students to discover everything they are called to be in life.
by Neely Borger | Dec 13, 2013 | COBA Faculty
Last month, ACU celebrated our veterans during chapel. This month, we want to continue to take time to remember those who have courageously fought for our country’s freedom. Rob Byrd, a member of the ACU faculty and a former officer in the US Air Force from 1982 – 1992, served as a navigator, electronic warfare officer, flight simulator programmer and supervisor, instructor, signals collection specialist, and mission director. He was born in Lafayette, Indiana and graduated with a degree in math from Harding University. He was commissioned into the Air Force in 1982 and served for 10 years before gaining his Masters in Math with an emphasis in Computer Science from Creighton University in 1992. Rob taught in the computer science department Western Kentucky University in addition to developing a new technical major titled Information and Knowledge Management at the York College in Nebraska. Rob joined the ACU faculty in January and now works in the school of IT and Computing.
Rob originally joined the military seeking an adventure and ways to serve others. He describes his time in the military as a time of serving others but in a completely different way. He states, “There were just people, missions, and opportunities to help people-the same opportunities I would have had if I had chosen any other career.” While in the military, Rob learned the life lesson of serving those who are hard to work with, no matter what the circumstance might be. Serving in the military truly opened his eyes to a different angle of service, performing difficult jobs most people would not want to do. In addition, Rob believes his service has directly translated to the service he does here at ACU, striving to humbly serve individuals and help them to accomplish their own missions in life. From Paul’s words, Rob encourages individual’s not to “become weary in doing good”. In order to live out God’s calling and mission for our lives we must serve others. ACU honors and thanks other family members, friends, and faculty in the ACU community who have served our country. These include: John Altman, Jim Bartee, Rob Byrd, Malcolm Coco, Brian Golden, Don Jackson, Ray Pettit, Jim Porter, Charles Small, David Swearingen, and Vince Swinney.
“Ultimately, what I learned was that one doesn’t really serve countries or companies, but individuals, and that it is more fulfilling to serve others than to be served,” says former Air Force officer Rob Byrd.
by Neely Borger | Sep 26, 2013 | Academics, COBA Faculty, Research
Beginning September 1, 2013, Dr. Monty Lynn will begin his appointment as the W.W. Caruth Chair of Owner and Managed Business in the College of Business Administration. The appointment is a three year assignment and will include an annual stipend along with a research and travel budget to be managed by Dr. Lynn for the benefit of Abilene Christian University, COBA, and his own professional areas of interest. Dr. Lynn was also appointed to the chair from 2006-2009.
During the last appointment, Dr. Lynn used some of the endowment to prepare for the course, International Poverty and Development, and to attend a conference at Yale University and participate in microfinance training. For the current appointment, Dr. Lynn is planning on using the funds to invest more into COBA faculty and services.
“It is an honor to receive this title from COBA. I am excited to continue serving students and faculty through research, teaching, and service,” says Dr. Monty Lynn, recipient of the 2013-2016 W.W. Caruth Chair of Owner and Managed Business.
Dr. Rick Lytle praised Dr. Lynn on his esteemed work in the field of research and leadership. “Dr. Monty Lynn clearly exemplifies great leadership in COBA, the ACU community, and beyond. This honor could not be given to anyone more deserving.”
Dr. Lynn is a well-known professor in COBA, exemplifying honor, character, and diligence to his students and colleagues. His exceptional expertise in teaching, research, and service show his influential role in COBA, on the ACU campus and around the world. Congratulations to Dr. Lynn on his well-deserved appointment!
by Neely Borger | Sep 17, 2013 | COBA Faculty
On October 12, 2012, one of COBA’s most esteemed professors, Dr. Daryl Jinkerson, passed away. This past summer, Dr. Vardiman along with Dr. Jinkerson’s family, including his wife Cindy, daughter Amanda, and mother Lavern, went to Honduras to work with the organization Casa de Esperanza , or House of Hope. The Jinkerson family and Dr. Vardiman worked with Perry Jinkerson, Dr. Jinkerson’s brother, and a church group from Starkville, Mississippi. The team engaged in various forms of mission work, including working in the school of the blind, visiting a local prison and hospital, and going to an extremely impoverished area called the “dump”.
The mission team also built a house in memory of Dr. Jinkerson. After five hours of strenuous work, the house was complete and ready for a Honduran family to move in. The money to build the house was collected in donations and cost less than $2,000 to construct. This was the second house Dr. Jinkerson’s mother, Lavern, had built in honor of a family member. Dr. Vardiman stated, “Building this house truly was a healing experience for all who were involved.” Dr. Jinkerson will always be remembered as a revered son, father, teacher, and friend. He has left an incredible legacy in COBA and the entire ACU community through the way he served others and walked with Christ. The Honduran home built in honor of Dr. Jinkerson reflects the diligence, the hard work, the commitment, the hope, and the strong foundation Dr. Jinkerson personified to everyone whose lives he touched.
by Neely Borger | Sep 10, 2013 | Academics, COBA Faculty, Current Students
STAR Team
COBA’s STAR program recently added Morningstar Direct software which will help the group continue to excel in the stock market. Morningstar Direct is a software on the PC that will enable students to use analytical tools to evaluate stocks more efficiently. Since 1999, the STAR program has flourished by making solid financial decisions involving stock investments.
STAR’s primary goal is to perform as well or better than the entire stock market. In June 2000, the program made its first investment of $110,000. Today, STAR has grown its investments to approximately $540,000 invested in 60 diverse stocks including consumer goods, banks, insurance, and technology companies. Ten student managers work for STAR alongside COBA professor Dr. Terry Pope. Dr. Pope stated, “This tool will greatly assist our students with evaluating and comparing STAR’s portfolio to other benchmarks.”
Morningstar Direct will also aid the STAR program by allowing students to have access to high quality equity analysis which will contribute to better research and higher quality reports. This will provide the STAR students with the ability to make more informed investment decisions. The Investment Committee of the ACU Board of Trustees has already given STAR additional money to invest twice. STAR will continue to pursue excellence in the financial world with the aid of the new Morningstar Direct.
by M. C. Jennings | Aug 23, 2013 | Academics, COBA Faculty, Dean Chronicles, Research
What has Dr. Rick Lytle, Dean of the College of Business, been up to in the past year?
Dr. Rick Lytle, Dean
Photo Credit: Steve Butman Photography
The answer is a lot. Dr. Lytle was given a unique opportunity to do post-doctoral work with the Marketing Insights team at Walmart headquarters, completed a research fellowship with CEO Forum, and was named to the board of directors for Focus on the Family. We’re proud of the accomplishments of Dr. Lytle and we’re excited for the opportunities that this will bring to our COBA students. Read more about Dr. Lytle’s professional endeavors in ACU news.
