High Point University’s chapter of the American Marketing Association won third place in the American Marketing Association International Collegiate Conference case competition. Pictured in front row from left are Julia Tremblay, Madison Torode, Courtney Gibson, Claire Roberts and Dr. Cynthia Hanson. Pictured in back row from left are Casey Urbaczewski, Nicholas Kadela, Nick Dellavecchia and David Dempster.
HIGH POINT, N.C., April 29, 2024 – High Point University students, faculty and staff recently received the following academic and professional awards.
Marketing Students Place Third in International Collegiate Competition
For the first time, HPU’s chapter of the American Marketing Association was chosen as a finalist in the American Marketing Association International Collegiate Conference (AMAICC) case competition.
A team of HPU marketing students attended the AMAICC in New Orleans, Louisiana, from April 11-14 and placed third in the competition. The students who attended were Courtney Gibson, Julia Tremblay, Nicholas Kadela, Nick Dellavecchia, Casey Urbaczewski, Claire Roberts, Madison Torode and David Dempster.
The case competition is extremely competitive, with more than 70 entries from among the 350-plus chapters across North America, said Dr. Cynthia Hanson, Zenon C.R. Hansen associate professor of marketing.
“The American Marketing Association International Collegiate Conference draws more than 1,500 attendees from over 350 colleges across the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico,” Hanson said. “Students attend leadership and skill workshops, participate in competitions and network with students and industry leaders. This year, the High Point University chapter was honored with a third-place finish in a national marketing plan case competition, and its chapter was awarded Outstanding in Chapter Planning and Professional Development. I was very proud of our students and their representation of High Point University.”
The students worked for months on research and creative execution for the marketing plan and the oral presentation to a panel of judges from the marketing industry and academia.
“Engaging in case competitions has refined my strategic agility and creative problem-solving skills, equipping me to adeptly navigate the ever-evolving currents of today’s market and those of the future,” said Courtney Gibson, HPU’s chapter president.
“The international case competition always provides AMA’s best experiential learning opportunity since it involves creating real proposals for national brands,” said Kadela, the chapter’s vice president for competitions and president-elect for 2024-25. “This year was especially rewarding, as we submitted our most creative and thoroughly researched campaign to date. Some of the highlights included designing a completely original campaign brand, brainstorming creative marketing tactics and learning about how to build a business that benefits society. Above all, it was a team effort, and what I loved most was mentoring our members through every step of the process and representing HPU as a team for our best performance yet. I cannot wait to chase even more growth next year.”
Physical Therapy Students Advocate at Capitol
HPU physical therapy doctoral students Andrew Fiorenzi, Claire Mutka and Kieran Tilford traveled to Washington D.C. with Dr. Lance Mabry, assistant professor of physical therapy, to discuss challenges facing the physical therapy profession and bipartisan legislative solutions.
As advocates for the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), they met with legislators and their staff from both parties, including U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, Sen. Ted Budd and U.S. Reps. Dan Bishop, Kathy Manning and Nicholas Langworthy. They discussed declining access to care for Medicare beneficiaries as well as fall-related injuries.
APTA oversees a nationwide effort for physical therapists to promote bipartisan solutions to enhance the profession and benefit the lives of their patients. The HPU physical therapy students completed 13 meetings with senators and representatives from North Carolina. The students volunteered for active speaking roles, discussing challenges facing physical therapy, how it is impacting patients and bipartisan legislative solutions.
“The experience and insight into the physical therapy community that has been offered by HPU and Dr. Mabry was truly incredible,” said Fiorenzi. “I was able to learn a great deal while meeting and speaking with some very talented therapists. It’s an experience that won’t soon be forgotten.”
The event has already garnered multiple co-sponsorships of various bills impacting the physical therapy profession, Mabry said.
“High Point University strives to offer premier life skills learning opportunities to our physical therapy doctoral students,” said Mabry, who is APTA federal affairs liaison for North Carolina. “Experiences like this shape our graduates into future leaders within the profession. We expect nothing less than both clinical and professional excellence.”
HPU Mock Trial Team Competes on National Level
The HPU mock trial team competed in The American Mock Trial Association’s Opening Round Championship Series Tournament on March 8-10 in St. Paul, Minnesota. It marked the first time in program history that the team advanced past the regional level.
Jacob Dillman, a senior criminal justice major and Bonner Leader, served as team captain. Matt Gray, a senior business major, was also a team member with senior criminal justice majors Riley Bandel, Liberty Macias, Macy Peele and Courtney Young, and junior criminal justice majors Alyssa Patterson and Brady Rotello.
As one of 24 teams, the students faced competition from the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Iowa, Wake Forest University and Carleton College.
“While they did not advance to the final national championship tournament, they learned a great deal from this experience and are eager to begin preparing for next year’s tournament,” said Dr. Scott Ingram, associate professor of criminal justice and pre-law advisor.
Math Professor Awarded for Distinguished Service
Dr. Karen O’Hara, an associate professor of mathematics, received the 2024 Southeastern Section of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA-SE) Distinguished Service Award at its March 14-16 meeting at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
O’Hara joined HPU as a faculty member in 1999 and since 2006 has been actively involved in service to MAA-SE, which includes Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. It is the largest of the country’s 29 regional sections.
O’Hara served four years as editor of the MAA-SE newsletter and eight years as co-director of its Project NExT, which is a professional development program for new or recent graduates with a doctoral degree in mathematical sciences. She currently serves as the director of student activities, a position she has held since 2016.
Other faculty members who served on executive committees with O’Hara recounted her sound counsel and said she always works “with smiles and lots of patience.”
O’Hara said she has mainly taken on roles to mentor young faculty and encourage students because she gets satisfaction from seeing their success and growth.
“I never dreamed I would earn this award for doing what I love,” said O’Hara. “I’m honored and humble to receive it.”
HPU will host the next annual MAA-SE meeting on Feb. 27-March 1, 2025.
HPU Students Named in National Student Voting Honor Roll
HPU students Grant Hines and Mathew Robson were among 137 college students from 36 states recognized on the 2024 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll.
They were honored for their nonpartisan efforts to register, educate and ensure their peers turned out to vote in the 2023 election cycle. Students on the ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll worked with nonprofit organizations, such as the Andrew Goodman Foundation, Campus Compact’s Newman Fellowship, the Fair Election Center’s Campus Vote Project and Student Public Interest Research Groups.
Hines will earn his master’s in communication and business leadership in May, after earning his bachelor’s degree in journalism in 2023. He will be joining NBC News as a desk assistant in Washington, D.C., where he will perform administrative, operational and editorial tasks for the NBC News Washington Bureau and MSNBC cable channel news. He will also assist correspondents and anchors and produce news stories.
Robson, a sophomore political science major from West Caldwell, New Jersey, is president of HPU Votes. He has been involved in the organization since starting at HPU.
“I’m also happy to announce that we are officially chartered as a club on campus,” said Hines, a co-founder. “This will allow the team to expand its reach and achieve so much more in the effort to get every student on campus registered to vote.”
More than 1,000 colleges and universities currently participate in the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge.
HPU History Students and Faculty Present Research
Students and faculty of the Department of History attended the annual North Carolina Association of Historians’ Conference on April 5-6 at UNC Pembroke. This included history students Kaitlyn Cruz, Samantha Dunn, Laura Mackie, Mac Mollins and Kayla Wylie.
“We are all immensely proud of HPU’s representation at this year’s NCAH conference,” said Dr. Amanda Allen, assistant professor of history. “The five students did an excellent job presenting their original research at their first conference in front of other professors from across the state.”
Dr. Michael Kennedy, instructor of history, presented a paper titled “All in the Family: Free Wage Labor in the Pennsylvania Iron Industry, 1726-1789.”
Five history majors presented original papers on two HPU-specific panels.
Dr. Shannon Lalor, instructor of history, chaired the panel titled “Queenly Power and Image in Tudor England.” On that panel, Cruz presented her paper, “Queen Mary I: ‘The Fierie Tryall of God’s Saints’ or ‘Defendour of the Faith?’” Mackie presented, “Elizabeth I: Just a Woman Chosen by God?”
Allen chaired the panel titled “Theology as Social Change and Control in Early Modern Europe.”
Mollins, a junior history and political science double major, presented his paper, “Overcoming Ostracization: An Analysis of the Rise and Fall of the Medieval Church’s Doctrine of Excommunication.”
“As a student passionate about history and who wishes to pursue using this passion in my career, the opportunity provided by High Point University’s History Department to attend and speak at a conference for actual historians served as a chance to grow my academic career and stimulate my historical curiosity,” said Mollins. “Being able to present in front of academics not only gave me the ability to share my hard work but also gain much-needed experience speaking in front of professionals. Because of this, the History Department’s trip to the NCAH conference was an unmitigated success for me, and I hope to hear of more students being able to attend in the future.”
Dunn, a junior history major and museum studies minor, presented her paper, “Soberness, Righteousness, and Godliness: John Calvin’s Theology as a Guide for Living.”
“As a history major, getting the opportunity to not only share the research I worked on but to share it with senior historians has already impacted my current and future work,” said Dunn. “The insight and feedback provided during the conference was invaluable. Since the NCAH conference is primarily for post-graduate and graduate historians, presenting as an undergraduate was an incredible opportunity to showcase my research while also promoting the work of HPU’s History Department.”
Wylie, a junior history and religion double major, presented “In Pursuit of Perfection: Examining John Wesley’s Doctrine of Holiness.”
“As an undergraduate, opportunities to present at the professional level are difficult to find, thus our opportunity to present at NCAH was very significant for us,” Wylie said. “For me personally, it was the first conference I have presented my research at and therefore was a very important step in my professional career. I am very thankful to the HPU History Department because they not only assisted with my research but gave me an experience that I can smile about knowing how much of an impact it will make on my future.”