From the Dean's Desk: Fall 2024 Edition

Greetings

It is with great joy that I send you this update about our ongoing work at the School of Management. 

In 2025, the school reaches its 100th year, and we have already begun commemorating the centennial with a high-energy kickoff event. On Sept. 24, more than 160 members of our community came together to form a “100” on Welch Field, followed by a picnic lunch with music. 

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The centennial celebration continued on October 17 as part of Celebrate USF weekend. Alumni, students, and families filled Koret Lodge to enjoy music by SIX, a student jazz group, and delicious food and drinks. I was honored to offer a champagne toast to President Paul Fitzgerald, who will complete his presidency at USF this calendar year.

These celebrations will be followed by many more opportunities throughout 2025 for our community to gather – both on campus and around the country. We have an anniversary planning committee composed of students, faculty, and staff who are actively involved in our ever-expanding preparations. Please read your emails from us and check our social media channels for information about these events.

Before we move into 2025, we would like to share with you the wonderful achievements of our community members from academic years 2023-2024. 

From the Dean’s Office, I am honored to have been recognized as one the ‘100 Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business’ by the San Francisco Business Times. This recognition is a testament to SOM’s impact on the business community, and I am grateful to be your dean and represent our school.

Running a business school involves the expertise of many people, including our dedicated Dean’s Circle Advisory Board. I am thankful to those who serve on our board, especially Greg Matz, BS ’81, who concluded his term this year as board chair, and Joy McGowan, BS’03, and Cheryl C. Smith, who will lead the board this year as chair and vice chair, respectively. This year we also welcomed new members Irena Matijas, BS ‘95, and Munkhnasan Narmandakh, BS ’03.

Over the summer, SOM attracted significant attention in the world of business education due to an in-depth article in Poets & Quants about how we are reimagining business education, titled "In San Francisco, A Small B-School Undergoes A Big — And Impactful — Transformation." Poets and Quants is an online news organization that covers both undergraduate and graduate business education.  I am grateful to our faculty and staff who have been willing to experiment with reimagining the school.

Silk Family Investment Institute Lab Open for Business

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This fall, the Silk Family Investment Institute Lab opened for business. School of Management students will have the opportunity to use the Bloomberg terminals in the room during and outside of class. The lab is made possible as part of a gift from University of San Francisco Trustee Jeff Silk ’87 and his wife Naomi. 

Our students never cease to amaze me, and you will find some of their stories within this newsletter. 

Lastly, people often ask me how they can help us achieve our vision of preparing our students to tackle society’s grand challenges such as climate change and income inequality. My answer is that you can SHARE in our efforts.

SHARE with SOM

• Speak to our classes: We are always looking for guest speakers for classes, student organizations, and panel events. If you are interested in such opportunities, please contact Rozanne Young, senior administrative assistant to the dean.
• Hire our students: If you have any job postings and internship opportunities for our students, please send them to Alex Hochman, director of undergraduate career services and Vanessa George, director of graduate career services.
• Advance your ideas and thoughts for programming. Shivani Shukla, associate dean for undergraduate programs and Richard Stackman, associate dean for graduate programs, would love to hear from you.
• Reconnect with the school and your classmates through our alumni programs and Centennial year events.
• Elevate the school’s mission with a financial gift. 

Thank you for all that you do on behalf of the School of Management, and I hope you enjoy reading the articles in this newsletter.

Otgo Erhemjamts
Dean, University of San Francisco School of Management