Executive MBA Students Raise $12,000 For Pediatric Cancer Fight

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA (December 5, 2007) – Students in the Smeal College of Business Executive MBA Program raised about $12,000 over the weekend with a a silent auction and other fund-raisers to help in the fight against pediatric cancer.

Sports memorabilia including a Franco Harris autographed football, an autographed Joe Paterno print, and NFL legend Randall Cunningham's shoes were auctioned off with the proceeds benefitting the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON). The auction also included 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.

The students also raised money through "jar wars," a fund-raising activity in which each class year—2008 and 2009—had a jar to fill with donations. On the night of the auction, bragging rights go to the class that ultimately brings in the most money.

Similar efforts last year by Smeal EMBA students netted THON more than $5,500. The money raised by the students, along with all THON funds, will benefit The Four Diamonds Fund, a charity fighting childhood cancer at the Penn State Children's Hospital in Hershey, Pa.

"The desire to give back is a vital trait for today's business leaders," said Dennis Sheehan, Smeal associate dean of MBA programs. "And these student-organized efforts indicate to me that our Executive MBA students understand that it's necessary in business to be a good corporate citizen and to take the initiative in pushing philanthropic projects."

The students, who continue to work full time while pursuing their Smeal MBA, attend classes every other weekend at the ACE Center in Lafayette Hill, Pa. The auction was timed to coincide with an in-session weekend.

The Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world. Last year, it 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.

The 2008 THON begins Friday, Feb. 22 at the Bryce Jordan Center on Penn State's University Park campus.

About the Penn State Smeal College of Business EMBA
Penn State's internationally ranked Smeal College of Business offers an Executive MBA program in Philadelphia that attracts students from across the Mid-Atlantic region. The 21-month program is taught on alternate weekends and features personalized executive coaching, intensive communication training, and top faculty from Penn State's University Park campus.

For more information, visit www.smeal.psu.edu/execmba or contact Jake Ray, managing director, at jakeray@psu.edu or 866-999-3622.

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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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