UNL Students Capture Over 40 Awards at PBL State Conference

The University of Nebraska–Lincoln chapter of Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) won more than 40 awards while competing at the Nebraska PBL State Leadership Conference in Kearney, Nebraska, April 1-2. Students who placed at the state conference qualified for the National PBL conference in Atlanta later this summer. At the national competition, students compete in business and technology events, attend leadership workshops and network with students and businesses from across the country.

UNL won 12 first place awards at the event, and award winners are listed below. The organization also had three students honored with the Who’s Who in Nebraska Phi Beta Lambda distinction, including: Kylee Gwinn, senior finance major from Omaha, Nebraska; Cody McCain, sophomore accounting and finance major from Aurora, Nebraska; River Towne, junior computer science major from Auburn, Nebraska.

Mark Davis, advisor for PBL, director of recruitment and academic advisor at the College of Business Administration, encourages students wishing to build their business skills to get involved in the student organization.

Winning UNL competitors pose with trophies

“It’s fulfilling to see our students apply the knowledge they learn in the classroom at competitive events like this,” said Davis. “The success they achieve matching skills against students from other colleges and universities around the state is a testament to both our faculty and coursework at CBA.”

In addition to the competitive events, PBL students elected Joshua Jones, a freshman economics major from Omaha, as the Nebraska PBL president for the 2016-17 year. Davis is excited to see Jones lead PBL.

“I was really excited to see Josh nominated as the state president of Phi Beta Lambda. Since he’s a freshman, I was proud of him for having the courage to run for an officer position. I like his energy and enthusiasm. He’s going to help take PBL to the next level,” said Davis.

Students can find out more about PBL on its webpage at http://cba.unl.edu/current-students/organizations/#PBLClub.

Individual event award winners included:

Accounting Principles: Brenna Backmeyer, freshman accounting and pre-cooperative education major from Elmwood, Nebraska, first place; Jacey Olmer, sophomore marketing and art major from Humphrey, Nebraska, sixth place

Business Communication: Brenda Tran, sophomore actuarial science major, Hastings, Nebraska, fourth place; George Chen, junior business administration major from Lincoln, eighth place

Business Presentation: Shannon Ronhovde, senior marketing major from Eagle, Nebraska, fourth place

Client Services: Katherine O’Neil, sophomore management major from Dunbar, Nebraska, third place

Computer Applications: Backmeyer, sixth place

Contemporary Sports Issues: Tommie Brechbill, freshman economics major from Stanton, Nebraska, fourth place

Macroeconomics: Jones, third place; Brechbill fourth place; Chen, fifth place

Microeconomics: Chen, first place; O’Neil, second place, Jones, third place; Gwinn, seventh place

Marketing Concepts: Michaela Mapes, junior economics and finance major from Bennington, Nebraska, second place; Ronhovde fifth place; O’Neil, eighth place

Personal Finance: Allison Schlender, senior accounting and actuarial science major from Omaha, first place; Samuel Stevenson, sophomore accounting and finance major from Omaha, third place

Project Management: Gwinn, first place; Schlender, second place

Public Speaking: Olmer, second place; O’Neil, third place

Retail Management: Tran, second place

Statistical Analysis: Schlender, first place; Gwinn, second place

Strategic Analysis and Decision Making: Ronhovde, third place

Management Concepts: Schlender, first place

Marketing Analysis and Decision Making: Ronhovde, first place

Entrepreneurship Concepts: O’Neill, sixth place

Financial Concepts: Chen, fifth place

Team event award winners include:

Desktop Publishing: Backmeyer and Mapes, fifth place

Economic Analysis and Decision Making: Jones, first place; Brechbill, Mapes and Stevenson, third place