Thanks to our big-hearted supporters who propelled the 2024 Glow Big Red — 24 Hours of Husker Giving on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14 and University of Nebraska's Charter Day, Feb. 15, to new heights at the College of Business. More than 385 gifts helped raise a record-breaking $131,065 to provide opportunities for our students, faculty and staff. Together, we build future business leaders like Only Nebraska can.

One of the ways we prepared students for the future is by hosting competitions where they can put their skills to the test. In February, our Center for Entrepreneurship hosted the 48-Hour Challenge where undergraduate student teams from across the university develop and pitch business ideas for the chance to win cash prizes. The challenge provided students with an experience much like a start-up environment and prepared them for the next competition in the center's signature series: the 37th Annual New Venture Competition, held April 16 and 18. Open to all undergraduate and graduate students at the university, the New Venture Competition is where students pitch their business plans to win a total of $47,500 and have a chance to earn an additional investment of $25,000 from the Husker Venture Fund.

We also held the multi-university Tenaska Business Challenge in late February. Seventeen university teams from seven states solved real-world business problems through interdisciplinary solutions. Doubling participation in its second year, the competition challenged teams to propose interdisciplinary solutions to an energy demand issue in a case developed by Tenaska, a leading U.S. energy company based in Omaha. Tenaska executives also helped coach the students, and the growth and success of the competition is due to their direct involvement.

Our faculty and their research also impact the future of business. Faculty events, inviting colleagues across the nation, also help inspire and enable them to drive discovery. Our Department of Supply Chain Management and Analytics recently hosted the Early-Career Sustainable Operations Management Workshop with colleagues attending from Harvard Business School, Stanford, UCLA, University of Texas at Dallas, Indiana University and more. They learned from keynote speakers from the Daugherty Water for Food Institute and the Kerry Group, as well 11 research presentations by early career researchers (PhD students and assistant professors) and a special session with nine 5-minute speed presentations.

We continue to offer top-notch continuing development for our alumni and community. Our Communications, Marketing and External Relations team partnered with the College of Law to offer Women Lead: Shattering Glass Ceilings to another sold out crowd, March 1. Offered every other year, the third partnership featured women in law, business, government and philanthropy like keynotes Morgan Shaw Parker, '99, president and COO of the Atlanta Dream WNBA team and Candy Marshall, '77 & '80, senior advisor and former president of TheDream.US. A huge thanks to our generous sponsors, marketplace vendors, speakers and attendees.

Looking to the future, we need your help. The College of Business offers three summer programs to help high school students explore various careers in business — DREAMBIG Academy, Discover Accounting and Discover Actuarial Science. Students selected for these programs come to experience campus life at no cost while learning about business in Hawks Hall and connecting with our Nebraska Business community. Nominate high school students for our Summer High School programs by Monday, April 1.

Creating the future starts with one step -- a nomination to a summer camp, a referral to visit campus or a meaningful conversation at an event. I hope you'll take that next step. Together, we are Nebraska Business.

Dean Kathy Farrell