Six Wins For Nonprofit Minor Students in Orlando

PROVO, Utah – Feb 25, 2019 – Every year the BYU Marriott School of Business nonprofit management minor program sends students to the Alliance Management Institute Conference in Orlando, Florida, to participate in case studies, interviews, lectures, and competitions. Between the students’ work ethic outside of class and BYU Marriott’s nonprofit program classes, the students prepared to win big this year in Orlando.

The thirty-five BYU students sent this year placed in the top three for six different competitions. Student’s presentations were given on four categories: undergraduate/graduate research, big idea, best practices in a nonprofit sector, or best practices within an Alliance Student Association. Thirty-nine total presentations were given from eight different universities.

Groups of students from BYU walked away with six top-three finishes in the four categories. In undergraduate/graduate research, BYU students took first, second, and third places; in the big idea competition, BYU students took first place; in best practices in a nonprofit sector, BYU students took second place; and in best practices within an Alliance Student Association, BYU students took second place.

“The students exceeded my expectations,” says Brad Harris, a professor of experience design and management (ExDM) at BYU Marriott and campus director of BYU’s Nonprofit Leadership Alliance. “I had high expectations, and the extra effort in preparing put our students above the other presentations,”

Students’ participation in this conference, along with completing their classes, is required for graduation from the nonprofit minor and completion of their national certification in nonprofit management leadership. BYU students have attended the Alliance conference in Orlando since 2009.  

“I loved the conference. It was exciting to present our information to a panel of judges,” says Lauren Hatchett from Mapleton, Utah, a senior in the nonprofit minor who is majoring in ExDM. Her group’s presentation took third place in undergraduate/graduate research. “There was also a question-and-answer part where the judges could ask us anything. Everything they asked us about we had learned in our classes, making it fun to respond so well.”

BYU Marriott’s nonprofit minor requires twenty-one credit hours of required classes, including a prep class students take the fall semester before they attend the conference. During six class sessions in the semester, students work with their teaching assistants and professors on choosing a topic for their presentations and perfecting them.

In the final two classes, students presented what they had worked on for their professors. The last two classes helped the students fully understand how the competition presentations were going to work and gave confidence to the those that they were adequately prepared Harris said.

Along with in-class preparations, students also prepared themselves outside the classroom. “Our group of four women prepared a lot outside of class,” says Hatchett. “We met at least once a week during fall semester on our own to prepare for the conference.”

Along with the six winning presentations, many of the seniors in the program completed their national certification in nonprofit management leadership certification, making this conference a success for BYU Marriott’s nonprofit management minor program.