Smeal MBA And EMBA Students Raising Tens Of Thousands Of Dollars For THON

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA (February 20, 2008) – With the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON) taking place this weekend, Smeal College of Business MBA and executive MBA students are finalizing their plans to support and participate in the annual event, which is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world.

Four Smeal MBA students will be among the nearly 700 Penn State students spending 46 consecutive hours this weekend on their feet raising money for The Four Diamonds Fund, a charity fighting childhood cancer at the Penn State Children's Hospital in Hershey, Pa.

Second-year MBA students George Benham, Andrea Jackson, Rich Krauss, and Melissa Matson have all signed up to dance, making this the first time that the Smeal MBA Program has fielded four dancers.

These dancers, and other MBA and EMBA students, have been busy the past year raising tens of thousands of dollars to support THON.

Current Smeal executive MBA student and undergraduate Smeal alumnus Ted Dwyer '94, chair of The Four Diamonds Fund Advisory Board, says he is "thrilled to see the increased level of participation in THON within both the on-campus MBA and the Executive MBA programs.

"I believe one of the most important lessons in business—and in life—is understanding the responsibility we all share in giving back to the communities where we live and work," Dwyer says. "Giving back is a big part of leadership and the willingness of the Smeal MBA students to commit their time, talent, and treasures in helping to conquer childhood cancer is a terrific example of true leadership."

The Smeal MBA Assocation raised more than $1,100 through "jar wars," a fund-raising activity in which each class year—2008 and 2009—and MBA faculty and staff had a jar to fill with donations. They've raised other funds through community outreach and their own friends and family.

The MBAA has also adopted a THON family, who will be present at the event to support their MBA student dancers and all of the THON participants. The family will receive "kid's mail" at the event, including cards and messages of support created by the Smeal MBA community.

The students have also been busy creating "dancer mail," which will be delivered to the dancers in the waning hours of the marathon, when they are nearing exhaustion, to keep their spirits up and encourage them to continue.

Additionally, first-year MBA student Marcia Murphy will have her hair cut on stage during THON to be donated to Wigs for Kids, a nonprofit that provides hair replacement to children who have lost hair as a result of chemotherapy.

In December, students in the Smeal Executive MBA Program in Philadelphia raised about $12,000 themselves for THON during their annual silent auction and other fund-raisers.

This year's EMBA auction included sports memorabilia, event tickets, accommodations, and even a babysitter for two Penn State football home games and a weekend of porter and car service with Jake Ray, managing director of the Smeal Executive MBA Program, acting as chauffer.

About THON
The annual Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON) is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. Last year's event raised more than $5 million for The Four Diamonds Fund. Over the past 35 years, THON participants have brought in more than $46 million and have helped thousands of children and families battle pediatric cancer. This collective effort, involving over 10,000 students, has become one of Penn State's greatest and most unifying traditions.

For more information, visit www.thon.org.

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REPORTERS & EDITORS: For more information, please contact Wyatt DuBois in the Smeal College of Business Media Relations Office at 814-863-3798 or wed112@psu.edu.

Penn State's Smeal College of Business offers highly ranked undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, Ph.D., and executive education opportunities to more than 5,500 students at all levels. Featuring academic departments of accounting, finance, marketing, insurance and real estate, management, and supply chain and information systems, the college is also home to major research centers such as the Center for Supply Chain Research, the Institute for the Study of Business Markets, the Center for Digital Transformation, the Farrell Center for Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Center for Global Business Studies, and the Center for the Management of Technological and Organizational Change.

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