Speeches

Smeal College of Business Building Groundbreaking

As you know, it is Halloween and I always follow the tradition of dressing up on this day. In recent years my costume of choice has been that of the Nittany Lion. The Nittany Lion is a signature image of Penn State -- much like The Smeal College of Business. Both The Smeal College and the Nittany Lion have garnered us recognition and earned us a rightful place among the nation's top educational institutions.

You would not believe the wonderful reception I get when I put on this suit. People want to shake my hand or high five me. Children want to hug me or pull my tail, and women tell me how good I look. I don't get that kind of reception when I'm just Graham Spanier.

It is the same for graduates of the Smeal College. In the business world, a Penn State degree carries tremendous weight and the holder of that degree possesses skills, knowledge, and abilities that propel them to leadership positions in their professions.

While the Nittany Lion is nearly 100 years old, Smeal College turned a youthful 50 this year -- but it is already leaving its mark on business and industry, as its graduates touch nearly every sector of the economy and our faculty gain international acclaim for their studies of the business world.

The groundbreaking for this building is the next step in the evolution of the Smeal College. Established in 1953 at the urging of faculty and prominent business leaders, The Smeal College has moved from an enrollment of about 1,000 students in its first semester to an alumni base of 60,000. Since its founding, Smeal College's rise among business schools has been impressive. Almost immediately after its creation, the Smeal College gained significant recognition for its teaching as well as for the research performed by its faculty. Research on unions, collective bargaining, the steel industry, banking, and commerce gained national attention -- some of it before the first class was offered. Today, the research centers at Smeal are well known as thought leaders in their respective fields. It was also 50 years ago -- on a Friday the 13th -- that this institution changed its name from the Pennsylvania State College to the Pennsylvania State University to more accurately reflect its growth in size and stature, as well as the vast scope of our academic offerings and our successful research programs.

The progress and history of the Smeal College and Penn State are closely linked, and that connection continues today. As you may have noticed, there is construction in many areas across this campus, signifying our desire to provide students and faculty with the best facilities and to keep Penn State on the leading edg Where we now gather will soon stand a building that will be Penn State's largest academic facility -- a true home for the Smeal College of Business. The excitement generated by this new facility will be multiplied many times.

This new building will be home to exceptional students who will go on to serve as captains of industry and entrepreneurs. It will create an atmosphere of innovation and expectation, and give the Smeal College a landmark building with high visibility. I want to take a moment to thank our alumni and friends who have helped make this state-of-the-art facility possible through their generous support. Support for the Smeal College has always been strong. In fact, during our Grand Destiny Campaign, which recently ended, private philanthropy added more than $47 million in cash gifts in support of the Smeal College. This immense new home for business -- one of the largest business school complexes in the nation -- promises to keep Penn State and the Smeal College in the forefront of business education, research, and practice.