Announcements

LiftSync, LLC, Enters Equity Partnership with Ark Applications, LLC and PAR, Inc.

One of our Spartan Accelerator companies, LiftSync, LLC, a wearable technology company, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement for an equity partnership with Ark Applications, LLC, a private equity and consultation firm, and PAR, Inc., a leading publisher of assessment instruments, software and other related materials. "We are delighted to be on this journey with LiftSync and believe that this solution will deliver transformative insight into athletic performance while providing tremendous value to the fitness industry. The LiftSync team members are remarkably talented and are a superb reflection of the University of Tampa programs in which they are enrolled," said Daniel Greco, managing director of Ark Applications. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed. In connection with the partnership is an equity stake in LiftSync, which will provide the team with working capital needed to pursue a market entry strategy.

Former UT Student Makes the TBBJ's 2016 List of Up and Comers

Congratulations to our very own former UT and Sykes College of Business student Tammy Charles for making the Tampa Bay Business Journal's list of Up & Comers in the Tampa Bay area in the "Under 30" category. After outstanding academic achievements as a student at UT, Charles has gone on to be equally successful in her career as a senior manager of corporate relations at Metropolitan Ministries. As her success continues, we are sure to see more of her achievements in business this year.

Beta Gamma Sigma Chapter at The University of Tampa Qualified for High Honors

Based on the information the Beta Gamma Sigma chapter provided on the Chapter Year in Review Survey and the data gathered from the Chapter Management System (CMS), The University of Tampa's chapter qualifies for High Honors for the 2015-2016 academic year. This status is indicative of a campus where academic excellence is valued and where the faculty officers of the chapter work diligently to enhance Beta Gamma Sigma’s stature on campus. As a High Honors Chapter, The University of Tampa chapter now qualifies for the following benefits:

• One Leadership Scholarship, which covers the cost of one student registration, including hotel accommodations, for the 2016 Global Leadership Summit (GLS) in Dallas, TX
• The ability to nominate a chapter advisor for the Outstanding Chapter Advisor Award.

Beta Alpha Psi Success at National Competition

A team of University of Tampa students took second place in a National Beta Alpha Psi Best Practices Competition, which was held at the 2016 Beta Alpha Psi Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD, on Aug. 4-6. Four UT students competed in a section entitled "Good or Great," which focused on making improvements at the chapter level. Because the UT team won the regional Beta Alpha Psi competition back in February 2016, they were invited to compete against the winners of the seven other regions from around the country at the annual meeting Aug. 5. UT earned second place in this national competition, finishing ahead of other regional first place teams from Cal State Sacramento, The University of Central Arkansas, Missouri State University, The University of Notre Dame, The University of Denver and Pacific Lutheran University. The UT team, which met periodically over the last few months to prepare, includes Brent Caramanica, Stefan Cox, Lucie Matulikova and Yafeng Zhang. UT was one of only eight chapters of over 300 Beta Alpha Psi chapters around the country to win the Gold Challenge Competition. This competition lets BAP students put their multimedia skills to use by creating a 5-minute video that explains and demonstrates why their chapter deserves the award or why a top student would want to become part of the BAP organization.

Sykes College of Business – Faculty Research Day 2016

The Sykes College of Business Annual Research Day will be held on Friday, March 18, 2016, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Room 131 of the Sykes College of Business. This program showcases the intellectual contributions made by the College's faculty over the past year. With over 80 full time faculty members in the College of Business, we have had more than 200 intellectual contributions in noteworthy journals this past year. Many of the Colleges' intellectual contributions are in pedagogical outlets such the Journal of Education for Business, the Journal of Financial Education, the Journal of Entrepreneurial Education and more. We pride ourselves as a premier teaching institution with intellectual contributions making an impact on theory and practice. Full program  

UT Students Successfully Competed at the Beta Alpha Psi Southeast Regional Meeting  

Nine UT students competed Feb. 27-28, 2016, at the Beta Alpha Psi Southeast Regional Meeting in Birmingham, AL. The teams took first place and second place, respectively, in two of the three topics for the Best Practices Competition. The team that earned first place competed in a section entitled Good or Great. Because of winning this regional competition, this team has been invited to compete against the winners of seven other regions from around the country at the Beta Alpha Psi Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD, on Aug. 4–6. UT topped teams from nine other schools in the southeast region including Auburn University, Elon University, USF, The University of Memphis and UCF, among others. UT's team included Brent Caramanica '16, Lucie Matulikova '16, Ryan Skaletsky '16 and Yafeng Zhang '16. The team that earned second place competed in a section entitled Leadership and Management. In this category, UT bettered teams from five other schools including The University of Mississippi and Florida International University. This UT team included Carly Cantelmo '16, Caramanica, Morgan Flannery '16, Kelly Moore '17, Sean Okochi '17 and Adam Zaki '16. The University of Tampa was the only school to have teams place in two of the three Best Practices categories.

UT Student Wins Governor’s Cup of Florida Award for Best Business Concept 

UT student John Publicover’s business, Storedby, was awarded Best Business Concept in the inaugural Governor’s Cup of Florida Business Model Competition. The Governor’s Cup was sponsored by the Roundtable of Entrepreneurship Educators of Florida (REEF). REEF is an organization that unites educators, thought leaders and students throughout Florida’s higher education community. Storedby is one of the companies in the UT Spartan Accelerator program in the John P. Lowth Entrepreneurship Center. The Spartan Accelerator provides large spaces for student entrepreneurs to work on their startup businesses. Six Florida universities participated in the competition. Publicover, a senior majoring in international business and finance, competed in the finals with teams from the University of Florida and from the University of Central Florida. Publicover was awarded $3,000 for the further development of his business. The Governor’s Cup was held during SEEC (Southeastern Entrepreneurship Conference), which was held at UT.

Upcoming Sykes Hall of Fame Event features John Thompson, Chairman of Microsoft Corp., and Bob Dutkowsky, CEO of Tech Data Corp.

Join us on March 3 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at The University of Tampa Falk Theatre. John Thompson and Bob Dutkowsky will address the topic "Shaping the Future of Tech...What Makes Tech Tick?" and discuss how success in the tech world takes more than smarts. In fact, it takes vision, tenacity and being able to create new opportunities. They will share their experience and insights about identifying trends and opportunities in the global technology industry.

UT Entrepreneurship Center Named a National Model Program for Entrepreneurship Education
Bloomberg
Jan. 26, 2016

The Lowth Entrepreneurship Center in The University of Tampa was recently awarded the National Model Program Award for undergraduate entrepreneurship programs by the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship at its annual conference in San Diego. The awards are given for exemplary programs that reflect innovation, quality, comprehensiveness, sustainability, transferability, depth of support and impact. “This award is arguably the most coveted award among entrepreneurship educators in the United States,” said Rebecca White, director of the Lowth Entrepreneurship Center and professor of entrepreneurship.

An Outstanding Example of Impact: New UT Economics Professor, Abby Hall

On Oct. 26, Abigail Hall gave a lecture at James Madison College at Michigan State University on drones and public choice. The invitation was directly related to her past and ongoing research on drones. Also related to the drone research, she was recently interviewed for a radio program operating out of Uppsala University in Sweden. The episode aired on Nov. 23. In addition, Hall presented a lecture for the Foundation for Economic Education at Georgia Perimeter College on Oct. 30 on income inequality in the US. Also related to her ongoing research, “The Gender-Wage Gap - A Myth that Just Won’t Die” is to be reprinted in the new edition of Katherine A. Ackley’s textbook, Perspectives on Contemporary Issues.

Congratulations to Deirdre Dixon for Receiving the 2015 Kenneth E. Clark Award!

Congratulations to Deirdre Dixon for receiving the Kenneth E. Clark Award for her dissertation, titled “Staying Alive: The Experience of In Extremis Leadership.” Her dissertation was selected from 75 submissions originating in nine countries through a blind-review process from 25 faculty members. To top it off, the International Leadership Association offered to sponsor a trip for her to Barcelona, Spain. What a way to start her first year as a full-time faculty at UT!

On March 20, 2015, the UT Sykes College of Business Hosted its Third Annual Faculty Research Day

Faculty members representing a variety of disciplines from the Sykes College of Business presented their research to the greater Tampa Bay community. Topics included brand building, the strategic use of information technology, legal issues associated with a digitally connected world, leadership and motivation in the African diaspora, and responding to cultural changes. Several faculty members further presented case studies, often tried and tested within their classrooms. The Fourth Annual Faculty Research Day will be held on March 18, 2016.

ABET

The University of Tampa’s bachelor’s degree program in management information systems (MIS) was recently accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). ABET is the recognized accreditor of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering and technology.