How to Succeed in Business...
Katie Elverson
Academic Advisor & Living Learning Community Coordinator
College of Business
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying might have been a popular book and a Broadway smash years ago, but in today’s rapidly changing global business environment, nothing could be further from the truth. Fortunately for USF business students, getting the proverbial “foot in the door” can begin as early as freshman year. And like a proud parent, Katie Elverson is delighted to help students take those first steps — steps that lead to the Bulls Business Community.
The Bulls Business Community (BBC) is a living learning center located on one of USF’s newest residential floors that is designed to give students a head start in the business world. As an academic advisor in the College of Business and the coordinator for the BBC, Elverson facilitates the innovative learning programs and career development opportunities available to BBC residents.
Elverson considers the position her “dream job.” One reason why is that she is able to combine her own experience as an undergraduate business major with her graduate degree from USF’s College Student Affairs Program and training in student affairs both as a student and as a professional. It’s also an ideal opportunity for her to share her own story with students.
As an undergraduate student at Penn State University, Elverson was majoring in business and totally focused on a future career in finance. At the same time, she was heavily involved in student affairs serving as orientation leader, head of large student-run events and residence hall association president. “My advisor saw how much I loved being involved in student life and making a difference and suggested that I consider a student affairs career in higher education. I didn’t give it much thought until I interned at Merrill Lynch. That’s when I discovered that while I had enjoyed my business courses, a finance career really wasn’t for me.”
That’s why Elverson is such an ardent advocate of the BBC philosophy of bringing the business world onto the campus and into the classroom. Exposing students to corporate practices and culture through internships, mentoring by business executives, and providing opportunities to see and hear first-hand about the corporate world helps ensure students’ future success. “All along the way, as I’m advising students, I emphasize ‘you.’ I ask them, ‘Where do you see yourself in the future,’ because I care personally and individually about their success.”
A small community within the larger university, the BBC provides business students with a built-in, support system and circle of friends with similar goals.
“The greatest satisfaction for me comes at the end of the school year when students are sad to be leaving their ‘home’ in the BBC for the summer. I love hearing them talk about how proud they are to live where they do. And I also love seeing the sophomores take the new freshmen under their wing when the fall semester starts up, knowing that I’ve help create that sense of community and friendship.”
-- Mary Beth Erskine, University Communications & Marketing