Celebrating 110 Years: Strength Within the Nebraska Business Community

Dean Kathy Farrell and Naree Philavanh, sophomore management and marketing major from Lincoln, Nebraska, celebrate 110 years as a college during the Back to School Bash.

This fall marks our 110th year as a college. Starting as the School of Commerce, it was the first time all areas of business were under one roof on campus. Our name changed to the College of Business Administration and we moved to 12th and R streets, later outgrowing the location and expanding across campus. With leadership and support from our generous alumni and friends, all of the areas of business were brought back together six years ago, under one roof in Hawks Hall as the College of Business.

Kathys Point — Dean Farrell talks with first-time freshmen and transfers at the New Student Kickoff.

I shared how the building was built by alumni for future alumni as we welcomed our new students to Hawks Hall at the New Student Kickoff this August. Our new Huskers lingered in the Hendricks Atrium with their official Nebraska Business shirts in hand, eating Dairy Store ice cream and talking to one another long after the event ended. Though transitioning to college, they quickly became part of our Nebraska Business community.

One of our key strengths has always been our community — our alums, business partners, students, faculty, staff and friends — both on and off campus. In this newsletter, we demonstrate that strength of our community through three stories of partnership and support:

Alums Tom and Lisa Smith provided a generous gift of faculty support to establish the first presidential chair in the College of Business.
Senior Jack Kinney, one of the first students in the business and law major, shares about the program, which is offered in partnership with the College of Law, and his experiences on campus and in the community.
Top-level business leaders helped our graduate students learn about strategic decision-making by sharing real-life examples and their insight during an eight-week MBA@Nebraska online course taught by Tammy Beck.

With the fall semester underway, Hawks Hall is bustling with energy as our faculty and staff work together with students as they stretch their strengths and create the future they want. I hope you will come back to experience it for yourself again! Join us at the Business Alumni Tailgate on Saturday, October 21, before the Nebraska v. Northwestern game. Register here today!

Come celebrate 110 years together! We are Nebraska Business.

Dean Kathy Farrell

Published: September 12, 2023