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News and Events

  • AY2008-2009 ENGN 1930G/H senior capstone projects, Leotus and NuLabel, on Mass High Tech "start up watch"

Two startup companies--Leotus and NuLabel--that emerged from last year's senior capstone course, ENGN 1930G/H, are currently listed among the top five startups to watch on Mass High Tech: Journal of New England Technology.

  • COE and Sociology Professor, Mary Fennell, receives NIH award for Community Cancer Centers Program

Mary Fennell, COE faculty committee member and professor, has been awarded the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 2009 Director’s Award. The honor recognizes her exemplary leadership in developing and implementing the National Cancer Institute’s Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP) to enhance community-based cancer care and research. She received the award during a presentation in Bethesda, Maryland, on July 29. For more information click here.

  • Application for admission into SOC 1930: Social Entrepreneurship Capstone (Fall Semester)

Students interested in taking the new Social Entrepreneurship Capstone for the fall 2009 semester will need to complete an application (download below) and submit it to Professor Fennell in order to enroll. Click here for course description.

SOC 1930: Social Entrepreneurship Capstone application

  • COE Class of 2009 graduates!

On Sunday, May 24, 2009, Brown University Trustee William H. Twaddell conferred the Bachelor of Arts degrees to our 75 graduates in Commerce, Organizations and Entrepreneurship. The ceremony was attended by the graduates, their families, and Professors Ebony Bridwell-Mitchell and Mary Fennell from Sociology, Barrett Hazeltine, Angus Kingon, Eric Suuberg, and Danny Warshay from Engineering, and Maria Carkovic from Economics. Katharine Hermann '09 spoke on behalf of the graduating class. Among the graduates, five of them were awarded Magna Cum Laude and seven were granted an Honors in COE distinction. Our graduates plan to work in industries as diverse as finance, consulting, research and IT, and Teach for America. Many of them also plan on starting their own companies or attending graduate school, law school, or pursuing an MBA degree. We wish them well!

See 2009 COE Memory Book

  • COE students among the 2009 Student Leader Award recipients announced

Congratulations to Brown Women in Business for receiving the student leader citation from the Student Acitivities Office in Forging Connections for most effectively engaging and involving alumni. Congratulations also to Thelma Breezeatle for receiving the Derek Canfield Barker Prize through the Swearer Center for Public Service. For more information on these awards click here.

  • Congratulations to the student winners in the 2009 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition!

Runa, winner in the student track, plans to produce and market energy drinks and bottled beverages made from the leaves of an Amazonian tree. The team (former students in ENGN 1930X, Entrepreneurship and New Ventures: A Socratic Approach to Innovation Analysis and Application), includes Tyler Gage, Daniel MacCombie, Charlie Harding, and Laura Thompson. Click here for more information.

  • Our students’ work on poverty alleviation in RI

The Capital Good Fund is a group of Brown students committed to poverty alleviation and economic development through the establishment of a Brown-Providence Microfinance Collaborative, known as the Capital Good Fund (CGF, or The Fund). CGF is committed to the provision of innovative banking and support services, predicated on the belief that access to affordable capital and assistance can play a critical role in unleashing the civic and entrepreneurial capacity of the poor, thereby raising standards of living and bettering borrowers' communities. CGF will leverage the resources of students, community organizations and a local bank to provide small loans, banking services and skills development programs and support for low-income residents in Providence, Rhode Island. CGF offers two types of loans: micro-business development loans ($2,000) for residents to establish or expand a small or home-based business; and immigration loans ($900 and $2,500) to provide capital for immigrants to pay the application fees to become permanent legal residents or citizens. CGF is currently in pilot phase and is committed to the continuation and expansion of service provision to Providence residents following this.  Please visit www.capitalgoodfund.org for more information on CGF, its products and services, and ways to get involved. Feel free to contact CGF at info@capitalgoodfund.org with any specific inquiries!

  • Revised Organizational Studies track course requirements to take effect in June

The course requirements for the organizational studies track have been revised. For detailed information click here. Below is a summary of the changes:

A. The Core COE requirements have not been changed in the current program revision.

B. The Research Methods options have been expanded to include:

  1. Soc 1020 as an alternative to Soc 1050
  2. Several additional Advanced Research Methods courses, including a number of graduate statistics seminars in Sociology and a number of advanced undergraduate research courses in departments other than Sociology.

C. The former requirement of two Organization Studies electives has been strengthened and subdivided into:

  1. One “Advanced Organization Studies course” from a restrictive list of courses taught primarily by Organization Studies faculty
  2. Two “Organization-Relevant Electives,” from an expansive list of courses taught throughout the University.

D. The former “Senior Seminar” requirement has been reconceptualized as an “Integrative Senior Experience” requirement.  In line with this, the requirement has been modified as follows:

  1. The requirement can now be satisfied by senior thesis work with at least one COE faculty member on the thesis committee (although not necessarily in the capacity of thesis advisor).
  2. If the requirement is to be satisfied with a seminar from the “Organization-Relevant Elective” list (as opposed to from the “Advanced Organization Studies course” list), the student must clear their seminar paper topic with the Organization Studies track advisor, and must file a copy of both the topic proposal and the final paper at the end of the semester.

E. The general elective requirement has been eliminated.

  • Bernard I. Fain Lecture in Economics with Simon Johnson, “The Global Economic Crisis: Is It Over Yet?” April 1

Simon Johnson, Ronald A. Kurtz Professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, Washington, D.C., co-founder of BaselineScenario.com, a website on the global economic and financial crisis, and former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, gave the 2009 Fain Lecture in Economics.

As researcher, policy advisor, and consultant, Johnson’s work has included a focus on crisis prevention, amelioration, and recovery in both rich and poor countries. During the past year, Johnson has been a frequent commentator on radio and television broadcasts about the U.S. and global financial crisis.

Date, time and location: April 1, 7:30pm, List Art Room 120 (simulcast in List Art Room 110)

  • New Business Economics electives added

Two courses have been added to the list of business economics electives, ECON 1630: Econometrics I and a newly created course, ECON 1390: Introduction to Research Methods in Economics. This will be offered by Professor Aizer beginning in Semester II of the coming academic year (2009-2010).  All students interested in learning about research in economics, and especially those thinking of writing a senior thesis with significant empirical content, are urged to take ECON 1390 during their junior year.  While a background that includes ECON1630 is recommended, either ECON1620 or ECON1630 are adequate prerequisites for this course.

  • Co-sponsored COE/S4 Colloquia, February 9, 12:00pm

In a talk entitled, How Employers Use Space, Roberto Fernandez of MIT's Sloan School of Management reviewed case studies of firms where space has consciously or unconsciously been a key element in labor recruitment strategy and discuss the implications for studies of labor market discrimination.

Location: PSTC Seminar Room, Mencoff Hall, 68 Waterman St.

  • COE Panel Discussion: Jobs in a Tough Economic Climate, January 26

COE hosted an alumni panel discussion regarding the challenge of a job search in a tough economic climate. Five alumni panelists addressed (1) job seeking in the shrinking financial sector; (2) work opportunities in growing sectors such as healthcare, environmental sciences, and education; and (3) the changing job demand in well-established sectors, such as travel.

Panelists:

Ajay Nagpal '90 — Global Prime Services, Barclays Capital

Jen McDonnell ’98 — Regional Green Specialist Wholefoods

Andrea Ryter ’81— Marketing Director CVS Caremark

Craig Powell ’00 — CEO ConnectEdu

Alex Goldman ’96 — Vice president Cruises Travelocity

  • A Roundtable on the Current Financial Crisis

On October 3 the Department of Economics held a roundtable discussion in response to questions of general interest from the campus community about the current financial crisis. Several COE faculty members participated in this event, which was open to the campus community. Each roundtable member presented his views about the economic downturn, followed by a Q&A session with audience members. To view videos of the discussions, please click here.

  • 10 Brown undergrads attended the Harvard Undergraduate Women in Business 4th Annual Intercollegiate Business Convention--"Business Without Boundaries"--on October 3-4, 2008

The convention aimed to unite, motivate, and educate ambitious undergraduate women from around the world with an interest in business.  Held in Boston, Massachusetts, the convention featured over 35 interactive sessions led by leading companies in marketing, consulting, and finance, helping attendees make valuable connections to business movers and shakers, mentors, and like-minded fellow students, and building their business savvy in preparation for internships and full-time jobs. The convention also featured a career fair, networking reception, and an exclusive Harvard Business School visit and luncheon. Click here for more information.