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Student Receives Three-Year
National Scholarship
One Marriott School student recently received a big boost from
the Kemper Foundation. Kyle Widdison, a sophomore from Hooper, Utah, majoring
in accountancy, has been named one of eighty national Kemper Scholars. The honor,
which provides financial support and summer internships for three years, will
assist Widdison in fulfilling his aspiration to become a successful business leader.
"In my career, I want to be known as somebody who can be trusted," Widdison said.
"To have that kind of career, I need to be involved with a business that reflects
these same values."
The Kemper Scholars program was created in 1942 by the James S. Kemper Foundation
to connect summer business experiences with undergraduate academic programs.
MPA Program Recognized for High Diversity
 Master
of Public Administration (MPA) students at the Marriott School have
more combined gender, cultural, and ethnic diversity than ever before.
About one of every five students admitted to the class of 2002 is
an ethnic minority. Approximately one-third of the students are
female, and 21 percent are international.
"This is the most diverse group of students we've ever had," said
Robert Parsons, chair of the Romney Institute of Public Management.
"We are delighted to have students from so many different backgrounds
in the program."
The first-year MPA class includes Native Americans, Asian Pacific
Islanders, African Americans, and Hispanics.
"The range of experience and cultures represented in the class will
enhance the program," Parsons said. "We are training our students
to become ethical leaders in communities around the world."
This year's class of fifty includes students from eleven countries:
Australia, Brazil, England, France, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, Taiwan,
Thailand, Ukraine, and the United States.
Students
Find Instant Profits in Web Venture
Start-ups are notorious for disappearing overnight. Not this one.
Josh Steimle and three other BYU students launched their Internet company,
Mindwire Interactive, in August. With just a small amount of funding from family
and friends, Mindwire has been able to remain in business and even turn a profit.
Mindwire, a web design company, made a profit after one month in operation. Steimle,
a Marriott School graduate student from Arcadia, California, majoring in information
systems management, started the company from his apartment.
In August he brought on partners Jeff Burningham, from Spokane, Washington, majoring
in communications studies; Jake Anderegg, from Sandy, majoring in economics; and
Josh Miller, from San Diego, an Executive MBA student.
"In two years, we hope to be the largest web developers in Utah and have offices
around the country," Steimle said. "We have clients coming to us with $250,000
jobs, and we haven't even advertised yet."
Even the Marriott School recognizes the value of the company. Mindwire was awarded
first place in the Center For Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition 30 March.
Mindwire Interactive can be found at www.mwi.com.
Service for Missionaries Hits the Web
 Two
years of missionary service wasn't enough for two BYU entrepreneurs
who understand the importance of missionary mail. Dave Bateman
and Ben Zimmer wanted to help expedite the missionary letter
writing process. In November, the duo launched a web service called
DearElder.com that prints letters, addresses envelopes, and mails
them to missionaries serving in pouch missions.
Bateman said they do everything except edit the letters. "All mail
is strictly confidential," he said. Bateman, a junior from Billings,
Montana, majoring in information systems, and Zimmer, a junior from
Port Orchard, Washington, majoring in English, said they average
about fifty hits a day, and about twenty-five of those are letters.
"Every month the volume doubles in size," Bateman said.
Bateman said he had heard of other web sites that catered to missionaries
and helped their families with letter delivery. "I realized that
you could open that up and expand the idea and actually create an
Internet interface where people could log on and write to people
in pouch missions," Bateman said. He had an interest in web site
development, and DearElder.com was the perfect solution.
Letters are delivered to Salt Lake City every Thursday and sent
to their destinations on Friday. The service can be accessed at
www.DearElder.com.
Student
Entrepreneur Goes Nuts
One student's experience at BYU has driven him nuts. Nathan
Murray, a senior majoring in mechanical engineering from Shelley, Idaho, is
the founder and president of Nutty Guys, a business selling a variety of nuts
at discount prices. Murray is not only a budding entrepreneur but also the 2000
Student Entrepreneur of the Year. He received a $5,000 award for his first place
finish in the Marriott School's entrepreneur competition.
"I view myself as an entrepreneur, not a business owner," Murray said. "Entrepreneurs
need to be involved with growing businesses. Nutty Guys' potential to grow is
incredible."
The Student Entrepreneur of the Year contest is sponsored by the Center for Entrepreneurship
and the Marriott School chapter of the Association of Collegiate Entrepreneurs
(ACE). The contest is open to all BYU students who have been in business for at
least one year. Businesses are judged according to their growth potential, profitability,
uniqueness, and ability to grow regionally, nationally, or internationally.
Murray began Nutty Guys in June 1999. Since its inception, the company has grown
slightly more than 100 percent. In addition to wholesaling nuts to businesses
such as Good Earth, Great Harvest, Wild Oats, and Kara Chocolates, Nutty Guys
sells its products to retail customers through the Internet (www.nuttyguys.com)
and by telephone. The company has customers in more than forty states.
"Our company's total sales to date are just over $560,000, with more customers
being added on a weekly basis," Murray said. "I am working on some big deals that
could increase revenues to more than $1 million a year."
Murray's entrepreneurial drive began early. At age ten, he got his first job moving
irrigation pipe. At age twelve, he began his own business raising cattle. By the
time he graduated from high school, Murray had saved $25,000. "I guess you could
call me a workaholic," Murray said.
School Names 2001 Hawes Scholars
 The
Marriott School named six MBA candidates as its 2001 Hawes Scholars.
The honor, which carries a cash award of $10,000, is the highest
distinction given to MBA students at the school.
The 2001 Marriott School Hawes Scholars are Adam Creer of
Troy, Michigan; Lane Hale of Danville, California; Todd
Hogan of Bountiful, Utah; Daniel Lister of Gypsum, Colorado;
Eric Rowlee of Ottawa, Illinois; and Leah Thomas of
Orem, Utah.
"The Hawes Scholars embody the finest combination of academic excellence,
personal integrity, and commitment to the success of the Marriott
School and BYU," said Henry Eyring, MBA program director.
"We're confident that they'll continue to represent us well as they
reenter the professional workplace."
Nominations for the Hawes Scholars are made by students and faculty
and voted on by both groups. Final selection is made by the Hawes
Scholar Committee. Selection is based on academic performance, leadership
maturity, and a commitment to high ethical standards.
"What I've enjoyed most about the Marriott School is my association
with peers and professors of amazing intellect, leadership capability,
and spiritual strength," Thomas said. "I've not only learned a lot
academically, but also practically about character and what makes
people great."
Named for successful corporate executive Rodney A. Hawes Jr. and
his wife, Beverly, the award was created in 1998 to recognize the
accomplishments of graduating MBA students. The Hawes Scholar award
is one of many initiatives made possible by the Hawes Endowment,
a gift of more than $2 million used to facilitate the growth and
enhancement of the Marriott School's nationally ranked MBA program.
Hawes, a Baker Scholar from the Harvard Business School, and his
wife wanted to create a tradition at the Marriott School that recognizes
and rewards excellence among students entering the business world.
photo: Marriott School's 2001 Hawes Scholars, Left to right,
front: Leah Thomas and Eric Rowlee. Back: Daniel Lister, Adam Creer,
Todd Hogan, and Lane Hale.
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