Dean's Message - Spring 2022
I can't tell you how excited I am that in-person events are back! Since Covid-19 restrictions have loosened, I have had the distinct pleasure of connecting with students in and out of the classroom, meeting with our Advisory Board in Toronto, our Global Council in New York, and participating in the rollout of the Principal’s Strategic Plan, “For the Future: Reimagining Education for Impact” during an event held in Toronto’s historic Distillery District.
These are among many events and interactions with students and alumni that are helping me get better acquainted with the Smith and Queen’s communities. I am ramping up my travel, and I look forward to connecting with more alumni across Canada and around the world in the near future.
I have also been participating in leadership panels with The Globe and Mail and the global business school association EFMD, as well as having meetings with the mayor of Kingston, Kingston Economic Development and the Business Schools Association of Canada. The latter two organizations both recently appointed me as a board member.
I have talked a lot about the future of business education and the need for what we do—our teaching, research and, ultimately, our graduates—to have an impact on society. If companies are expected to have a positive influence in their communities and the world, so too must business schools. I encourage you to read my thoughts on the importance of business schools having a social impact and how business education must evolve to meet the changing expectations of organizations, in a piece I wrote for Smith Business Insight, “Training future leaders to thrive”. The new Queen’s strategy is in line with this vision—re-imagining educational programs to prepare our students to have an impact on the world throughout their lives.
This issue of Smith Magazine is filled with stories of Smith students and alumni who are already making an impact. Here are just a few examples:
- Smith Commerce students, alongside their Engineering counterparts, raised $339,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society (“Commerce shoots. And scores!”).
- UPstart Venture Challenge winners Kelly Thomson and Mehwish Panjwani, both BCom’16, created reusable packaging for e-commerce (“UPstart winner tackles trash”).
- Several Smith alumni have stepped up with funding solutions for Black, Indigenous and other diverse entrepreneurs (“Closing the funding gap”).
- Juniper Park, an ad agency led by Jill Nykoliation, BCom’93, created Signal For Help—a hand gesture that lets abused and abducted women call for help (“Adventures in Advertising”).
- The Wema breast pump, created by Sahar Jamal, BCom’11, Artsci’11, is reducing the risk of infant death by helping moms in Kenya breastfeed longer (“Empowering working moms in Africa”).
As a community, it’s important that we stay connected. Please update your profile on SmithConnect.com if you are interested in mentoring a student or are available for coffee chats. We always need guest speakers in our classes and at student events. Please email the Alumni Engagement team (smithalumni@queensu.ca) if you can volunteer the time to share your experience and career journey with our students.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly with your ideas for how we can engage the alumni community, support our students and enhance the impact of Smith around the globe.
Wanda M. Costen, PhD
Dean, Smith School of Business
at Queen’s University
wanda.costen@queensu.ca