Michigan Tech College of Business Newsblog

COB Alum Appointed CFO of Fox Cities Performing Arts Center

Published October 23, 2024

Sharon Pickering-Polzin who earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting in 1993, has been appointed the chief financial officer of the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center. Her appointment to the role was covered by Fox Cities Chamber and Broadway World.

According to media releases, Pickering-Polzin will leverage her expertise in non-profit accounting and strategic planning and her passion for people to drive organizational success and make a meaningful impact within the community. The releases noted that her educational background complements her extensive career dedicated to the non-profit sector, including significant roles with the YMCA of the Fox Cities and the Girl Scouts of the Northwestern Great Lakes.

Congratulations, Sharon!

Alumna Offered Houghton County Administrator Position

Published October 18, 2024

Following candidate interviews for the Houghton County administrator position on October 16, the county board voted to offer the job to current county finance director Chelsea Rheault. Rheault, ’22, earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting in the Michigan Tech College of Business. In an article in the Daily Mining Gazette, Rheault was praised for her strong financial management skills and her contributions over the past three years

Congratulations, Chelsea!

Ola Ayeni Named 2025 Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Finalist

Published October 17, 2024

Academic Office Building, Michigan Tech College of Business

Michigan Sea Grant has announced that Master of Engineering Management candidate Ola Ayeni has been named a finalist for the 2025 class of the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship.

The Knauss program matches graduate students and recent graduates with host agencies in Washington, D.C., such as congressional offices, the National Marine Fisheries Service, or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. For one year, fellows work on a range of policy and management projects related to ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources. Fellows can be placed in the federal, legislative or executive branches.

After spending six years as a network infrastructure engineer and another six as an environmentalist and circular economy practitioner in Nigeria, Ayeni wanted to strengthen her skills in sustainability and leadership. This led her to pursue a master’s in engineering management at Michigan Tech — a program where she could combine her technical expertise with managerial insights.

Ben Stelzer ’15 (B.S. Finance) Appointed Assistant Coach for the Santa Cruz Warriors

Published October 16, 2024

Former Michigan Tech basketball player and assistant coach Ben Stelzer ’15 (B.S. Finance) was mentioned by The Daily Mining Gazette in a story about his appointment as assistant coach for the Santa Cruz Warriors. During Stelzer’s career with the Huskies, he finished as the program’s all-time leader in 3-pointers and was also named NCAA Division II All-American, Academic All-American and Midwest Region Player of the Year.

Soonkwan Hong Is Editorial Advisory Board Member of Journal of Social Impact in Business Research

Published October 14, 2024

Michigan Tech campus in the fall. — The Michigan Tech Campus in the fall season

Soonkwan Hong, associate professor of marketing in the College of Business, is an invited editorial advisory board member of the Journal of Social Impact in Business Research, which was founded in July 2024.

The journal explicitly responds to AACSB’s new standards, which underscore “Societal Impact” as encompassing “…activities undertaken by business schools that over time lead to meaningful, discernible change for the betterment of people, economies and the environment” (AACSB and Societal Impact: Aligning With the AACSB 2020 Business Accreditation Standards, February 2023, p.2).