CommerceUVA Fall 2007 (Investors' Report) - McIntire School of ...

From the Dean
The 2007-2008 academic year is off to a great
beginning. The McIntire School Class of 2009
is deep into ICE, recruiting for the Class of
2008 is well under way, the M.S. in Accounting
Program welcomed a record number of students
(53), and the M.S. in the Management of
Information Technology students are halfway
through their program. The School is searching
for outstanding additions to our faculty, and
we are introducing the curriculum innovations
planned over the past year. This year’s fall forum
(on private equity) and our board meetings
were a great success, and the football team is off
to a terrific start!
These activities may seem like business as
usual, but this year will be far from routine. In
fact, 2008 will be perhaps the most exciting year
in the long history of the Commerce School.
First, we will open the spring semester Jan.
16, 2008, in our new building complex on the
Lawn. Construction is in its final stages, and
from my unique vantage point in Pavilion X, I
can assure you that they are working from very
early in the morning until very late at night.
Everyone who visits the complex is extremely
impressed, and we cannot wait to share it with
the entire McIntire community. The official
dedication of the complex will be held in
conjunction with the spring symposium Friday,
April 25, 2008. I hope that many of our alumni
and friends will join us.
Second, we are working on a variety of
innovations that are historic in their own right.
The faculty Global Task Force is planning the
School’s approach to our international activities
for the next decade. We are introducing and/
or expanding several program and research
initiatives, including real estate, private equity,
leadership, and entrepreneurship. I am working
with both faculty and staff to expand our
strategic marketing, alumni, and corporate
relations activities, and our faculty leadership is
developing a plan that will allow us to grow and
recruit the best colleagues in the coming years.
Third, we are thoroughly engaged with
curriculum and faculty planning, as well as
marketing and recruiting, for our new M.S. in
Commerce Program (with tracks in Financial
Services or Marketing and Management).
Although we have made major revisions to our
existing programs over the past decade, this
“fifth-year” M.S. program for graduates from
the arts, sciences, humanities, engineering, and
other non-business disciplines will be the first
new degree program for the Commerce School
in 20 years. One of the most exciting aspects
of the program is the required international
immersion term, during which students may
choose to study in the U.K., Denmark, China,
or Singapore.
Finally, we’ll be transitioning the School’s
emphasis in the capital campaign from
“Back to the Lawn,” our building campaign,
to fundraising for people and programs,
particularly faculty and student support.
We need to ensure that our spectacular new
building is filled with the best students, faculty,
staff, and programs, and we will require the
engagement of our alumni and corporate
partners to realize this goal.
On a personal note, I am also beginning
my third five-year term as dean of the
Commerce School. Charlotte, my children (and
now grandchild!), and I are so proud and happy
to be part of the U.Va. and Charlottesville
community, and we look forward to many more
years with the School and living on the Lawn.
I sincerely appreciate the terrific support of our
faculty and staff, students and parents, and great
alumni and friends. I hope that you will all visit
the McIntire School soon in our new home.
— Dean Carl Zeithaml