"...allow us to share with you the gift we have been given, and the vision we have of changing the world." By Dr. Bruce A. Schooling - Dean, Fermanian School of Business
More Than the Bottom Line
So what is the Fermanian School of Business?
It is a place to call your own! A wonderful, state of the art building with all the buttons and whistles, the Fermanian School of Business sits on a bluff at the south end of the PLNU campus overlooking the athletic fields, housing and the Pacific Ocean. The building is wonderful.
But, the building is not the School.
People -- graduates, students, staff, professors, and friends are the Fermanian School of Business. The building is a place where alumni and others are welcome and wanted. Not just business graduates, but anyone doing business and seeking a place to connect and call home.
I see the Fermanian School of Business as a place of gathering, connecting, retreating, and learning. It is a place where the diverse populations we serve have the opportunity to share and learn from one another. There are several parts to the Fermanian School of Business and each one of them (the undergraduate and graduate programs, regional outreach, and the investment in the international community) has much to offer on its own. But they do not stand alone. They are components of a larger vision including the experience and dreams of those who have built the foundation for this great school of business. And there is a place in each one of these component parts for alums to come alongside and share among themselves as well as with others gathering at the School. Historically alumni may have found an easier fit for their skill and knowledge, and greater networking opportunities in some areas of the School more than others - such as the Fermanian Business Center . In fact, undergraduate and graduate students, our regional constituents as well as the international members of our growing community are all welcome to interact together. We welcome those in the marketplace who will come and share their experience and benefit from the rich networking opportunities available throughout the School...
Perhaps you are looking for an MBA done in a Christian setting. The Fermanian School of Business is the place for you! Because you are active in the business world you have learned valuable lessons that can only be “caught” in the actual marketplace. There is great and unique value in the opportunity to share this knowledge and experience in a setting that also weighs the importance of high ethics and values. Because we are investing in the world, we invite you to participate in that investment in the future as well. (And I’m not talking about money, although that will always help as well).
Our mission is simple and is summed up in the tag line – “More Than the Bottom Line: Business Education to Change the World”. We share a common vision with the University of teaching, shaping, and sending.
To teach well is to be about academic excellence. For a business school that is the bottom line. Our students, graduate or undergraduate, should get the highest quality business education in the world. And we firmly believe that one aspect of this high quality education is the opportunity to experience the field and to learn from those who are actively applying their knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the practical arena.
But if all you receive at the Fermanian School of Business is a great education then we will have failed in our mission. We are committed to more than the bottom line. The integrity of the individual and the quality of a person’s character are essential qualities of a business person intent on changing the world. We believe that an active conversation about these critical elements needs to be shared and shaped if it is have an impact. We are exploring Social Entrepreneurship not just as an alternative to welfare, but because it builds on values and initiative to create sustainable enterprises that increase value both of and for the individual. A workable reflection of integrity and character lived out.
And, we are committed to intentional engagement that is inclusive. The Fermanian School of Business wants the participation of our friends to be as easy a possible. We want there to be a network of people coming from different arenas willing to accept the challenge to be involved with one another, with the regional business community, and in the growing international opportunities to fulfill the mission of the School: To Provide the World Business Leaders with Strong Christian Character.
Our new facilities are your new facilities. We may not still have the professors you knew when you attended, or your major course of study may have been found somewhere else… but we are in “the business of business” and we want to know you, help you, and be helped by you.
As we go about the opening of the beautiful, new facility there will be opportunities to gather and network with one another, with students, and with our other friends. It is our prayer that you will allow us to share with you the gift we have been given and the vision we have of changing the world.
Because business must be more than the bottom line, and you are a vital part of changing the world. |