Faculty Excellence
Our condolences to the friends and family of Professor Emeritus William Preshing, who passed away on December 21. Bill began his career in what was then the School of Commerce in 1957. After time spent at the U of C and the Banff Centre, Bill returned to the U of A in 1966 and held positions in the School as Director of Institutional Research and Planning, Director of the Office of Community Relations, and Associate Dean (Undergraduate Programs). We were honoured to have Bill write a history of the School of Business as part of the U of A's centennial celebrations in 2008.
Congratulations to Joel Gehman, who was promoted to full professor effective July 1, 2020.
The Masters of Finance Program is ranked #101+ in the newest QS World University Rankings. The ranking places the School of Business 3rd in Canada, behind only Rotman (U of T) and HEC Montréal (Université de Montréal).
Dean Joseph Doucet is the co-chair of the Government of Alberta's Innovation Capital Working Group. The group will provide government advice on how to incentivize private capital investment in the province's tech and innovation ecosystems. A final report is expected at the end of February.
Student Success
Team Canada's gold-medal winning team
BCom student and Golden Bears goaltender Brendan Burke was a member of Team Canada's gold-medal winning team at this year's Spengler Cup tournament in Switzerland. Burke is the 6th Golden Bear to win the Spengler Cup and the first since 1984.
The U of A's Marketing, Human Resources and Business Strategy teams all placed in the top three in this year's JDC West 2020 competition. Competing against 11 other universities, the Business Strategy team placed 3rd, the Human Resources team placed 2nd, and the Marketing team placed 1st.
Three School of Business students are semi-finalists in this year's CEOx1Day competition. Felisa Pador, Britney Trieu, and Cody Roberge are three of the six U of A students competing for the final two Alberta spots. Twenty students from across the country will win the chance to spend the day being mentored by one of Canada's top CEOs.
Kevin Zentner, 2019 Students' Union Hooper-Munroe Academic Award Winner
Kevin Zentner is a recipient of the 2019 Students' Union Hooper-Munroe Academic Award, which rewards academic excellence at the University of Alberta. Kevin was a student in the School of Business' Leadership Certificate program and was heavily involved in both the Alberta International Case Team (AIBC) and JDC West during his time as a student.
Alumni Accomplishments
Congratulations to Tyler Yassin (2017 BCom), Western Region Gold Medalist in the September 2019 Common Final Examination. Also making the national honour roll are alumni David Readman (2018 BCom), Travis Smith (2018 BCom) and Henie Tse (2017 BCom).
Keenan Pascal, Co-owner of Token Bitters
Keenan Pascal (2008 BCom) is a finalist in the 2020 Western Living's Foodie of the Year competition. Pascal is the co-owner of Token Bitters, a line of locally inspired bitters, concocted from organic and local ingredients and named for Edmonton streets and neighbourhoods.