News Releases 

“We’re moving,” was a phrase Ethan Ritchie, a student in the master of information systems program, heard often in his childhood. As he moved eight times to different states and around the world, Ritche gained an appreciation for people of different backgrounds and beliefs. It is with this openness and desire to learn that Ritchie approaches his life and his studies in the BYU Marriott School of Business.

Erica Jensen and Brianna Merling, two MPA students from the BYU Marriott School of Business, each received the 2023 Doyle W. Buckwalter Award, which includes a $1,500 cash prize, for exemplary performance in respective off-campus internships.

For Brandon Egan, faith has guided his life decisions—from choosing which college to attend to where to focus his studies. After graduating from the finance program at the BYU Marriott School of Business in 2007, Egan has continued to seek God’s hand as he navigates changes in his career.

In January, Vicki Okerlund retired after 24 years in her position as director of alumni relations for the master of public administration (MPA) program at the BYU Marriott School of Business. From building an alumni network to forging one-on-one relationships with those in the MPA community, Okerlund leaves behind a legacy of Christ-centered leadership that extends beyond the workplace.

For senior Aaron Adams, a human resource management major at the BYU Marriott School of Business, choosing a career path was less about finding a perfect fit and more about finding a path that will help him grow.

An assistant professor of organizational behavior and human resources in the BYU Marriott School of Business, McKenzie Rees had a strong prompting to do a peer-mentoring project for her section of HRM 540: Organizational Effectiveness. “For me, the essence of this class is helping students understand how they can make others feel valued in their work,” Rees says.

After growing up all over the world and working in several different career fields, MBA student Ben Nzojibwami has found his place at the BYU Marriott School of Business as the MBA class president. Nzojibwami’s unique background has helped him center his education on relationships and service.

Sixteen interfaith teams of MBA students from across the country gathered in February to participate in the second annual Faith and Belief at Work Case Competition at the BYU Marriott School of Business. Participants addressed how businesses can encourage employees to bring their whole selves to the workplace.

Justin Weiss, a graduate of the EMPA program from the BYU Marriott School of Business, has lived a life full of unexpected triumphs and hardships. Throughout all of these pivots, Weiss has embraced spiritual, academic, and professional opportunities by keeping an open heart.

A group of enterprising BYU students aim to significantly — if not entirely — reduce parking violations in paid parking lots, college and otherwise. And their idea, an AI detection and tracking system called Spot Parking, just got a major endorsement and $12,000 in cash by winning the 2024 BYU Student Innovator of the Year competition.

Hailey Bronson was a champion high school soccer player. But she gave it up to be a different kind of champion. Bronson, a junior studying information systems at the BYU Marriott School of Business, now channels her time and talents into her academic goals.

In 1991 Deloitte & Touche Professor of Accounting Monte Swain began teaching at the BYU Marriott School of Business. He was just 29 years old—the same age as half of his students. Now, after 33 years of enriching and inspiring the next generation of business students, Swain is teaching his final semester in the School of Accountancy.

Though she had never left the country in her life, Orem native Alyssa Minor took a leap of faith to travel alone to Africa. As a participant in the Ballard Center for Social Impact, Minor researched the humanitarian needs of the orphanages in Ghana, which propelled her to visit the country to help in her own way.

Dale Hull has spent most of his professional career helping others seeking medical attention. During his most recent endeavor, he took the opportunity to help individuals with paralysis by co-founding a rehabilitation center. This year, Hull was named the 2023 Alumnus of the Year by the Romney Institute of Public Service and Ethics.

Army ROTC cadets interested in graduating college as a commissioned officer are required to complete summer training. So this past summer on a hot and humid day at Fort Knox, Kentucky, Brigham Young University student Aidan Fryar helped a teammate in need. For this display of leadership, among others, event organizers awarded Fryar the Patton Award, which distinguishes a single cadet out of roughly 600 who demonstrated confidence, boldness, dash, and daring during a time of crisis.

A growing body of research shows that a student’s sense of belonging can have a significant positive impact on academic performance, retention and mental health. With that in mind, professors at BYU and Texas A&M recently asked BYU students how they anticipated their experiences on campus would impact their feelings of connectedness to BYU.

Eva Witesman believes in creating a better world, and she works toward it through her position as a professor in the BYU Marriott School of Business’s MPA program. Teaching courses on statistics, social impact, and prosocial business strategy, Witesman emphasizes to students the importance of unity with one another and the organizations they will work for.

In his first semester at Brigham Young University, Aaron Scribner sustained severe facial injuries in a grisly zip-lining accident. He then overcame a steep recovery and found a renewed drive to positively impact others.

According to the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, 96 percent of MBA graduates will enter management roles within 15 years of receiving their degrees. So for most MBA students, learning to be effective and responsible leaders is essential. But at the BYU Marriott School of Business, associate professor of organizational behavior and human resources Taeya Howell prepares MBA students to be Christlike leaders when they enter the workforce.

In order to help global supply chain management (GSCM) students prepare for the disasters they will respond to in the workforce, associate professor Barry Brewer invited Kathy Fulton, executive director of American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN), to run a disaster simulation at the BYU Marriott School of Business.