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Alumni Information Systems ROTC Strategy
From his childhood in Côte d’Ivoire to his Church mission in Ghana and a year-long stint in China, Stéphane Akoki had seen a lot before he even started college. Yet he discovered that coming to BYU Marriott widened his world—and his impact.
Since graduating with a bachelor’s degree in information systems from BYU Marriott, John Koelliker has relied on authentic relationships in his life to help start his own company.
When Yara Anabtawi was a student at BYU, her insatiable curiosity and her love for a wide variety of subjects made choosing a major difficult.
After completing his undergraduate degree in environmental science from BYU, Trenton Blair jetted from soil labs to B-52 cockpits and joined the US Air Force.
Ching Tong finds joy in building genuine relationships with others. The MISM graduate now lives in New York City and continues to make meaningful connections.
Jared Tate, a 2016 strategic management graduate, would rather build ties with his family than put on a tie every morning to go to work.
In early September, information systems students, alumni, and faculty gathered for a new kind of tailgate, one filled with renewing and creating connections.
As a teenage boy, C. Todd Linton fell in love with airplanes. This moment was the beginning of a lifelong pursuit in the field of aviation.
Jen Almond was playing a trivia game along with other students during the BYU Marriott School of Business’s new-student orientation when a question popped up that she knew she could answer correctly: “How old is the oldest student in this class?”
As a sharp-minded young boy, Travis Cook was constantly pulling apart alarm clocks, radios, TVs, VCRs—even a BB gun—to examine their pieces.
When Isaac Pettit was 14, his uncle gave him an extremely unusual gift--a unicycle. With the promise of $100 if he could learn how to ride the one-wheeler gracefully, Pettit took off.
It’s an unassuming blue box, not much bigger than a deck of cards.
The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, were life changing for 13-year-old Nathan Christiansen. That day would inspire Christiansen to serve his country.
When a teacher disciplines a grade school student, it is usually because the student was caught passing notes or talking in class. Unless that student is BYU Marriott alum Nate Gardner.
Information systems alumna Ioana Schifirnet recognizes many similarities between art history and one of her personal passions: data analysis.
TRUE Africa provides educational and humanitarian sponsorships to orphans and other vulnerable children. “We operate entirely on volunteer efforts, enabling 95 percent of every dollar donated to go toward program services,” Hite says.
BYU Marriott strategy alum Gentry Davies has made a career out of solving tricky projections and analyzing future business opportunities.
When former BYU ROTC cadet Scott Lovejoy was a newly enlisted medic in the United States Army, he received a surprise visit from his father that changed his life.
When C. R. “Casey” Yadon picked up his phone one day in 1988, he was surprised to find a representative from Walt Disney Imagineering on the other end. A former work colleague had recommended Yadon as just the person to fill an open position, the representative said. Would he be interested in submitting his résumé?
Sam Lentz, a 2007 information systems alum, reflects on how he has grown in his career since graduating from BYU Marriott.
When Stephen H. Russell reflects on his life, he is struck by the way seemingly small decisions and ordinary situations have blossomed into extraordinary opportunities. “None of this was part of a strategic plan,” he says, “and I feel grateful when I see all the times Heavenly Father has blessed me.”
After realizing his student apartment did not have a recycling program, BYU Marriott strategy alum Ryan Smith went to work to create his gig economy recycling company Recyclops.
Four years ago, BYU Marriott alum Stephen Farnsworth wanted to move technology forward. In order to reach his goals, he took a risk—one that has paid off years later.

Born and raised in Honolulu, Thomas Y.K. Fong has long loved learning about the earth’s natural processes. He originally planned to earn a bachelor’s degree in geology at BYU and then pursue graduate studies in oceanography. But during one midwinter geology field trip to St. George, Utah, a sandstorm blew through the group’s campsite, prompting Fong to reconsider whether his studies had brought him too close to nature for comfort. “Halfway through that cold, sand-blown night, I’m thinking, ‘Is this really what I want to do for the rest of my life?’” Fong recalls.