Bearcats Mean Business podcast

Grant Freking: (00:00)
Welcome back to Bearcats Mean Business, the official podcast of the University of Cincinnati's Carl H. Lindner College of Business. My name is Grant Freking, Manager of College Communications and Marketing at Lindner. We've just wrapped up the fall 2024 semester and what a fall it was. To review the past few months and to long for warmer temperatures. It's my pleasure to welcome Dean Marianne Lewis back to Bearcats Mean Business. Hi Mare.

Marianne Lewis: (00:25)
Oh, hi, Grant. Glad to be here with you.

Grant Freking: (00:27)
So much good happened at Lindner this past fall. You and I spoke off-air about how to weave these various developments, updates, launches, and more under a single idea. And you came up with the idea of cooperative, or to phrase it in another way, partner-powered education.

Marianne Lewis: (00:43)
The more I think about this one grant, I mean our emphasis and really our strategic plan is to be the leading co-op business school in the United States. And when we say co-op, oftentimes I think we think of co-op as I, I'm, the way I differentiate is little C versus big C. Little c co-op is an internship. I mean, a wonderful opportunity, right? A one-off that a student gets to go, have a real-life experience, see what they like, what they don't like, what they can be good at. A whole host of eye-opening opportunities. I love little c co-op, but big C is cooperative. And to me, cooperative means partners. It means this feedback loop that helps us all continue to learn and get better. And the more I, I think about that and I, I have a wonderful job. I mean, I get to see the, the fabulous learning and development of our students, but I very much also spend probably more of my time with the partners and making more of that is what this is about.

Grant Freking: (01:43)
That's very true. Now, this fall ushered in year two of Universal co-op, meaning our traditional first year students enrolled with the knowledge they, that they must, lemme start again. 3, 2, 1. This fall ushered in year two of Universal co-op, meaning our traditional first-year students enrolled with the knowledge that they must complete at least two co-op experiences prior to graduation.

Marianne Lewis: (02:03)
Yeah, I'm so excited about that. I mean, we've, to me, co-op has long been our greatest differentiator for our students. I mean, it just sets them apart in so many different ways. And now I'm seeing the opportunity to make more of it in a more systematic way. I mean, I'll give you the example Grant. I, I got back two days ago from New York. And it's amazing to meet alumni in New York who talk about how hard it was to go through the interview processes on Wall Street when they're the only non Ivy Leaguer sitting at the table. And within about, I don't know, 30 seconds to a minute of the conversation, realizing they're also the only ones at the table with any experience. And it matters.

Grant Freking: (02:53)
It does.

Marianne Lewis: (02:54)
and I love that. And I want to make sure the students know that's what it's about. It's really about leaning into experience.

Grant Freking: (03:01)
And that professional experience while you're within these walls still is absolutely invaluable. Now, I should note that Lindner's continued excellence in cooperative education would not be sustainable without the hundreds of employer partners, which you just hinted at. Who furnished the college's students with multiple, paid professional work experiences to bolster the students' networks, resumes, and skills. And those partnerships help Lindner students complete more than 1,000 co-ops over the 2023-2024 academic year. Now, it's important to note that there is no one-size-fits-all employer partnership at Lindner. Marianne's nodding her head.

Marianne Lewis: (03:33)
Mm-hmm .

Grant Freking: (03:33)
Small to mid-size businesses, nonprofits and large corporations alike team up with Lindner's award-winning career services office to meet their co-op needs.

Marianne Lewis: (03:43)
Grant. I'm, I'm glad you say that because I think it's, it's absolutely critical for our partners, particularly our employers, to know that that variety is integral to Lindner. And, and yes, I love our Lindner Career Services. They are remarkable experts in this field. So to give you kind of a bit of a flavor of it, what that variety looks like, and I think I, I'm going to go on two, two sides of the spectrum. I mean, on the one side, if you went to non UC for business schools and universities, what they're really talking about is summer internships.

Grant Freking: (04:18)
Mm-hmm .

Marianne Lewis: (04:19)
Which I, I have, I believe in, I absolutely believe in summer, summer internships. There's a host of organizations that that's what they're looking for. But then you can go to the other side and you can go to say, and again, I have great respect for DAAP and engineering here at UC.

Marianne Lewis: (04:34)
They have a very clear and pretty rigorous one semester on, one semester off it. It's, it's structured and it's somewhat rigid.

Grant Freking: (04:43)
Mm-hmm .

Marianne Lewis: (04:44)
We at Lindner do both. We do all, because what's most important for us and our students is that they get really good work experience opportunities. And the only way for that to happen is for those experiences to work for the employer. So if your employer, if if I am talking to a partner and they say, boy, I don't know what to do with them except in the summer, well then great, let's make the most of your summer. If I'm talking to an accounting firm, oh my gosh, the busy season in spring, please, that's where we should double down. Okay, great. Let's do the point being, if it's flexible for the employers, it's really good experiences for the students. And that's how it works on both sides. So, and it's our career services that help make sure that that match is working.

Grant Freking: (05:32)
As you were explaining, that flexibility immediately came to mind, and I'm glad you mentioned it at the end there. That's the word that came to mind. And that flexibility fits our distinction here at Lindner. DAAP and engineering and other places UC. That works for them. I think this works best for us. Absolutely.

Marianne Lewis: (05:45)
I do too.

Grant Freking: (05:46)
And you mentioned the feedback loop earlier. Lindner's partner powered education also shows up with our partners serving as co-creators as part of a feedback loop of program innovation. Stay with me here. For example, partners with the Center for Business Analytics are fueling our new applied AI offerings.

Marianne Lewis: (06:03)
Actually, I was with the Applied AI Lab team yesterday. And I love this example. So I mean, when I talk about the feedback loop, right, from an employer perspective, things are moving really fast in industry, in a lot of fields in ai, it's lightning, right? It's just so fast. The change is ongoing. How do we make sure that we are learning from those changes so that we're continuing to innovate in our curriculum and making sure that our students have the skills they need in the industry? Put in the middle of that, are our faculty and our staff, right? Our faculty who are teaching need to be and doing research need to understand what's happening in the industry. Our staff, like career services, need to understand that variety. So now we lean into applied ai. Alright, here's a field that is moving incredibly fast and our Center for Business Analytics has long done projects.

Marianne Lewis: (06:56)
That's what they do for their partners. And they bring students in and they get real life opportunities to understand what's happening. They've now doubled down on what's going on with AI and those, and growing the number of projects that are AI related, and now expanding and built out a fellowship program for faculty. So they're getting more faculty as well as students in those projects. The point of that is we need more of our community to see what's happening in industry and see how quickly it's changing. Because the issue with AI is, in some ways it's amorphous. Like people go, well, if it's everything to everybody, it's nothing to no one. So what do you actually do with ai? And if you're working with a partner like Fifth Third is a great partner as an example, and you can see what are they doing in a big way, right?

Marianne Lewis: (07:49)
Really revolutionizing what's happening in banking with AI and in very important little ways at every desktop to help people be a little more productive. Use their brainpower and their time more wisely with ai. Well, the, by being with them in projects, we get to learn what Fifth Third's doing. Fifth Third then in turn looks to our faculty and staff to say, help us think outside the box. 'cause we only know banking, right? You see what I'm doing? So this becomes a, we're all learning together so that our students can learn faster. And that's how, to me the big C for cooperative works, and I love that example. 'cause they do beautiful stuff.

Grant Freking: (08:31)
It's the empowering business problem solvers feedback loop.

Marianne Lewis: (08:33)
Oh, it is.

Grant Freking: (08:33)
Now, yeah the Applied AI lab, which is led by Kirk and Jacki Perry Professor of Analytics Jeff Shaffer, again, underscores our commitment at Lindner to providing training and education in this field. And just to sample some of the offerings that are available right now, they include public and private center for business analytics training courses, and the new AI in business graduate certificate. Now, I ran into Jeff Shaffer and added a three each one. Now, I spoke to Jeff Shaffer at an event recently, and he assured me that there are more exciting applied AI developments on the horizon. So stay tuned for updates there.

Marianne Lewis: (09:05)
Yeah, I would add, you know, an example of that update, right? He's working on a host of ways as is our department of in, in this area on either non-degree programs. So quick, easier, right? Here's what you need now to upskill around AI and then deeper dives into degree programs. But the other thing that's happening, Grant, is that Jeff is leading efforts so that our faculty and staff are having trainings of their own. Again, it's moving fast. Some people are gonna be deep experts in ai, others, myself included, are gonna know enough to be dangerous and to make sure that we understand the language, understand what's possible, and then know who the experts really are.

Grant Freking: (09:49)
Absolutely. Now you mentioned some upskilling, and we've got some, some good news on that front too. From this fall, we relaunched Lindner's professional programs to meet the needs of professionals seeking lifelong learning, upskilling and microcredentials. Now, Lindner's professional programs are short, concentrated bursts of learning open to business professionals at every stage of their career. I wanna emphasize that, at every stage of their career. Now, we offer custom private programs for companies as well as open enrollment programs like the LevelUp Leadership Development program, which is run in conjunction with the Warren Bennis Leadership Institute. And I know, Mare, you have a personal connection to this one.

Marianne Lewis: (10:25)
I do have a personal connection. So, I'm gonna start at a higher level and then go into the LevelUp program, which I think is fantastic. in these conversations that we're having with our partners, I mean, oftentimes they're really talking about their pipeline, meaning their co-ops and their student hires. But what's also happening in the conversations since they talk about their own current employees needing to build new skills, right? We just talked about ai. We know that's an area that they'll lean into us for. So let us help you with your talent, new talent, and upgrading and continuously updating your current talent. With LevelUp, and I'm a big fan of Scott Dust, who leads this program and our professional development efforts, LevelUp is about leadership. And I study leadership. And I will assure you, you are always learning. You are always honing and expanding your toolkit as a leader. The goal of Level Up is to really build around a host of capabilities to help rising professionals go to that next level, that next level of leadership, bigger responsibilities, greater accountability, more strategy, operational and culture building assignments. That's what LevelUp is about.

Grant Freking: (11:42)
And we have that here for professionals looking for learning in concentrated short bursts. Now, let's shift gears a little bit and talk about Lindner's graduate programs. As I want to note the developments and accomplishments from this hardworking department.

Grant Freking: (11:53)
Lindner's full-time MBA cohort grew to 40 students this fall, and this cohort represents eight countries, and almost half of the class have degrees from non-business disciplines, which is very interesting to me. Bloomberg BusinessWeek ranked that same program Lindner's full-time MBA cohort, program third in the country for return on investment, which is an outstanding accomplishment from everyone involved in GPO.

Marianne Lewis: (12:16)
Oh, yes, it's outstanding.

Grant Freking: (12:17)
Yeah. And finally, graduate programs launched two new graduate certificates, AI in business, which I mentioned earlier, and quantitative finance.

Marianne Lewis: (12:27)
Grant, I'm proud of our graduate programs. I mean, increasingly the way we work with our graduate offerings is we think about it as a portfolio and think about, okay, there are really a couple of key reasons that you go for a graduate program. One, it is to upskill, right? It's to take it to the next level. You wanna accelerate your career. But the second is to pivot because you see that something's changing either in your own personal interests or the work that you're doing, and you want to move into a new category. That portfolio now is just getting increasingly robust here at Lindner, right? Yes, we've got wonderful traditional programs in marketing and finance, and I don't mean traditional as in old fashioned or old school, I just mean fundamental, right? Really deep knowledge around marketing and finance as examples. Now, we're getting increasingly specialized so that wherever you are in your career trajectory, you can look at that portfolio and say, oh, I wanna really do a deeper dive into even a small chunk, not a full degree program, maybe a certificate, like you said, quantitative finance, right? Classic mix, beautiful of analytics and AI and finance. And so much is happening in the world of finance around that integration. So come and do a certificate and learn more about the cutting edge. We bring in experts that are living in that field and our own faculty are really pushing the envelope. But that's the goal here. Accelerate your career and or pivot. And sometimes it is both.

Grant Freking: (14:00)
Right. And I've got examples of students doing both of those things coming up. So I've got a carrot I can dangle for our listeners and for Marianne in this room on the subject too, I'm working with graduate program staff and faculty to finalize some students from Lindner's MBA and Master of Science programs to appear on Bearcats Mean Business. Now, the goal of these podcasts is for listeners to get an insight on how graduate students found their way to Lindner. It'll be domestic and international students and their experiences as graduate students. So stay tuned. Now, Marianne, you've got an MBA and a PhD on your CV. What do you remember about your time as a graduate student and how that affected your, your journey?

Marianne Lewis: (14:34)
That brings back so many memories, grant. I mean, I remember my MBA well, because I, I think I assumed it was going to just be a continuation of the undergraduate. Like it was gonna feel the same.

Grant Freking: (14:46)
Not so much.

Marianne Lewis: (14:47)
No.

Grant Freking: (14:47)
Yeah.

Marianne Lewis: (14:47)
No, and I'm grateful that it didn't because it shouldn't, it's, it's not an undergraduate program.

Grant Freking: (14:53)
Yeah, that's not the intention.

Marianne Lewis: (14:54)
It's not the intention. It is, it is truly a professional program. So it's very, very applied. And the expectation is that you have a, a different motivation, right? I mean, I love our undergraduate program. There's so much maturation. I mean, growing up that you do between a first year and a graduate and a graduating senior. But when you get into a graduate program, you're now a professional and you really are thinking about how do I accelerate, how, what am what am I doing to take the next step? That motivation changes the people you're with, the cohort that you're learning with. It changes the way your faculty interact with you. The expectations are higher. And I've always believed that the higher the bar, the better you do. But boy, in those days, I, it was an eye-opening. I, I don't think I really understood, because I didn't come to UC. I didn't have a co-op. I didn't have that experience. And here I am, in an MBA program with everybody around me with way more experience than I did, realizing I don't know what I wanna be when I grow up and I better figure it out really fast. And I appreciated a graduate setting to, to push me.

Grant Freking: (16:04)
In that way, which is, and intention of our programs, especially the MBA, which I know you and I have both spent some considerable time with in the full-time program. And to see the strides that they've made and, and the, the rankings now reflect the work that they've put in and the qualifications and the qualities that that program has.

Marianne Lewis: (16:17)
Well, and if, if I can, I mean, number three in the country in return on investment, that is an incredible statement about our program. That means that the transformation and trajectory change that happens in a single year of an MBA program.

Grant Freking: (16:33)
Yep, just one year.

Marianne Lewis: (16:33)
Just one year is number three in the country. And I, I just wanna put a big point on that because I'm very proud of it and I know the hard work that goes into it.

Grant Freking: (16:42)
Yeah, absolutely. Now, as we near the end of this episode, I'd like to note that Lindner hosted numerous Lindner-produced or Lindner-affiliated events in our building this fall. The list includes, but is not limited to the Data Science Symposium, Lindner Business Honors Homecoming, which included a surprise appearance from Lindner Alumnus Jason Kelce, I know you're, I think you're familiar with him, Marianne, right? .

Grant Freking: (17:03)
The annual Symposium gala for the African Professionals Network, the Project Management Institute of Southwest Ohio Summit and the Journal of Accounting, Auditing, and Finance Symposium on ESG. Again, that's just a sample of everything that has happened this fall, which went by way too fast.

Marianne Lewis: (17:17)
It did, didn't it? And, and I, but I love those examples, and there are so many more. There is always something going on in Lindner Hall. I think it is the beauty of a gorgeous building, well-positioned in the middle of campus and the energy. There's always a buzz in this building, and I think it matters, right?

Grant Freking: (17:35)
And I like just to think of Lindner Hall as a hub for empowering business problem solvers, not only for students, but for staff and faculty and our partners, and many other stakeholders who come through these doors. And I think we pride ourselves also on being a place of celebration and commemoration and just being welcoming overall.

Marianne Lewis: (17:51)
Yeah, absolutely.

Grant Freking: (17:52)
My thanks to Dean Lewis for stopping by the Lindner Podcast Studio Today, Bearcats Mean Business is going on a brief hiatus during the holiday season, but we will be back prior to the start of spring semester, which begins on January 13th. If you enjoyed today's episode, consider subscribing or leaving a five-star review for Bearcats Mean Business on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Thanks for tuning in. Happy Holidays and go Bearcats.

Marianne Lewis: (18:14)
Thank you, Grant. Go Bearcats.

Grant Freking: (00:00)
Hello and welcome back to Bearcats Mean Business. My name is Grant Freking, Manager of College Communications and Marketing at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business. Two years ago, I wrote a two-part series for business.uc.edu, looking at mental health among college students with current Lindner students walking me through their own experiences. Study after study indicated that students were increasingly anxious, depressed, and experiencing at least one mental health issue. At Lindner, we strive for a culture of understanding to alert affected students to the resources available to them within the college and UC at large. With fall semester exams fast approaching, it's an appropriate time to revisit this topic. Today I'm joined by Dr. LaSondra Wayne, Lindner's embedded clinician, who works with UC's counseling and psychological services, better known as CAPS. Welcome LaSondra.

LaSondra Wayne: (00:46)
Thank you for having me. I'm happy to be here.

Grant Freking: (00:48)
Now, LaSondra, you've been embedded at Lindner for over a year now. What does it mean to be an embedded clinician, and what have you learned about Lindner students so far?

LaSondra Wayne: (00:56)
What it means to be an embedded clinician is that the University of Cincinnati, in partnership with CAPS, has actually placed a therapist or a mental health provider within the college. So in addition to having main CAPS available to students now, I wanna say about 13 of the colleges have an embedded counselor who is there to, specifically provide support to the students.

Grant Freking: (01:25)
Okay.

LaSondra Wayne: (01:25)
In that college.

Grant Freking: (01:26)
So, LaSondra, what about more about your professional background and specifically your experiencing working with patients of all different ages and backgrounds and that sort of thing?

LaSondra Wayne: (01:35)
So, my background is quite diverse. I have worked with families, with family preservation. I have worked with the child welfare system as an investigator of abuse and neglect. I have worked in substance abuse recovery capacity.

Grant Freking: (01:54)
Okay.

LaSondra Wayne: (01:54)
I've also worked in a shelter setting with survivors of domestic assault and sexual assault.

Grant Freking: (02:04)
And can you tell the audience a little bit more about your background and why you enjoy working with students so much?

LaSondra Wayne: (02:09)
I started out in education, actually.

Grant Freking: (02:11)
Okay.

LaSondra Wayne: (02:11)
And so once upon a time I wanted to be a teacher.

Grant Freking: (02:15)
Okay.

LaSondra Wayne: (02:15)
And that sort of, kind of led me to psychology in a roundabout way because once I was working with students, I realized that there were other, you know, underlying things that was also impacting their learning. So being an embedded counselor in a college, like higher education setting, it sort of marries those two things for me. But what I love about working with the college population in particular is that they're full of life, youth and possibility. You know, they're, they're innovative, they're learning really cutting-edge things, you know, like, in terms of business and things like that. And so they just have that drive and that energy that comes with youth. And that hope still that comes with youth, I think

Grant Freking: (03:11)
They're, they're a little less jaded than you and I.

LaSondra Wayne: (03:13)
Yeah, exactly. Exactly.

Grant Freking: (03:13)
We've been in the real world.

LaSondra Wayne: (03:13)
Exactly.

Grant Freking: (03:13)
A little bit too long, right?

LaSondra Wayne: (03:15)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (03:16)
That's great to hear. Now, let's turn to the coming exam week, which is obviously a stressful time for all students on this campus. In your experience, what physical, emotional, and even maybe even some mental indicators do students feeling the strain of exam week exhibit?

LaSondra Wayne: (03:31)
Mm-Hmm. . So obviously we know every student is different, and so, it can vary. But some of the common things that I notice is students maybe aren't sleeping as well. They're not eating as they should, not eating balanced. They are oftentimes isolating themselves because they're studying and they're just like, you know, not having a social life at all. And so they're really just high anxiety in terms of trying to just make that grade, get the grade. And oftentimes if I'm working with a student who let's say, has a scholarship on the line, okay, that can be really, really stressful because they have to have a certain GPA to maintain that scholarship. So you hear the stress, they're just like, I have to get the pressure, I have to get the grade, I have to make that GPA. So yeah, there's just a lot of pressure.

Grant Freking: (04:33)
Feeling the burden of not only meeting the living up to the scholarship.

LaSondra Wayne: (04:37)
Yeah.

Grant Freking: (04:37)
But also feeling the burden that perhaps they're placing on themselves because of their family, things like that.

LaSondra Wayne: (04:41)
For sure. So there will even be like mood changes, you know, irritability, sadness, all kinds of things that you do see when they're kind of in crunch time.

Grant Freking: (04:50)
Those dreaded all-nighters too.

LaSondra Wayne: (04:51)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (04:51)
I'm sure for a lot of our students.

LaSondra Wayne: (04:53)
Absolutely.

Grant Freking: (04:53)
Yeah. What are some of the common words or phrases that students use to describe how they're feeling when you meet with them?

LaSondra Wayne: (04:58)
Mm-Hmm. . Oftentimes students are basically like, I'm swamped. I'm overwhelmed, you know, this is too much. I don't have enough time. Or they'll say things like, it's hard to focus or everybody else understands, everybody else gets it. I still don't know. Things like that. And just always feeling or saying things like it has to be perfect, you know,

Grant Freking: (05:26)
A lot of undue pressure that put on themselves.

LaSondra Wayne: (05:27)
Absolutely. Yeah.

Grant Freking: (05:28)
To perform.

LaSondra Wayne: (05:28)
Mm-Hmm. ,

Grant Freking: (05:29)
Which is a lot of, probably not, not healthy thoughts and some, maybe some spiraling.

LaSondra Wayne: (05:33)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (05:34)
When it comes, comes to that. Now we have some, some international students, not just some, a significant number of international students here at Lindner. What differences, if any, have you noticed in regard to supporting their needs or concerns?

LaSondra Wayne: (05:46)
In terms of our international students, I think it's important to note that they are not a monolith. And so even let's say, look at our Indian students, you know, which is a good portion of our student population here.

Grant Freking: (06:01)
Sure.

LaSondra Wayne: (06:01)
India has multiple states, multiple languages, multiple cultures, you know, and so we have to take that into consideration. And so, and even within a particular group, their families are different and things like that. So, but speaking generally, being an international student typically comes with having to adjust to some things that our domestic students just don't have to adjust to. So they are in unfamiliar environment

Grant Freking: (06:34)
24/7 in the unfamiliar environment.

LaSondra Wayne: (06:35)
Definitely.

Grant Freking: (06:35)
Not just in this building, but outside these walls.

LaSondra Wayne: (06:37)
Exactly. Exactly. So in addition to them navigating academics, like all of our students, they're also trying to figure out just our transportation system and getting to the doctors and, you know, just some of the things that we take for granted as, you know, folks who are just from here. Even just the cultural idioms and, you know, stuff like that. They're just like, what does that mean when someone says, you know,

Grant Freking: (07:03)
The peculiar, the peculiarness of the English language.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:05)
Absolutely. And so, you know, they're, they're wanting to make friends like everybody else, and they don't, you know, always know the social cues and stuff like that, so.

Grant Freking: (07:19)
Yeah. And how, how could they, right.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:20)
Yeah.

Grant Freking: (07:20)
They didn't grow up here and probably put a lot there. There's all the academic pressure for them of coming across the world to.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:26)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (07:27)
perform in this building, but then they also put the social pressure on themselves.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:30)
Right.

Grant Freking: (07:30)
To sort of fit in and make friends and hope maybe that they wanna stay here or not.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:34)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (07:34)
But that's, man, that's a lot of pressure they put on themselves.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:37)
For sure. And then they're also concerned about their visa status and, you know.

Grant Freking: (07:41)
Right.

LaSondra Wayne: (07:41)
That sort of thing. So it's, yeah, it's a lot.

Grant Freking: (07:45)
I think it's important to note that everyone, and I mean, everyone goes through varying stages of physical, mental or emotional struggle, feeling down or anxious or whatever word you want to use to describe your mood. It's all normal. And these feelings are not limited to a specific age, gender, race, ethnicity, or social standing.

LaSondra Wayne: (08:03)
, that's true. I will say it's important to understand that our mental wellness is on a continuum. And depending on what's going on in our lives, you know, where we are, that's gonna vary. And then sometimes we are doing fairly well, and then something will just happen that can be life changing. We can experience a loss or, you know, a major transition that can definitely impact one's mental health. Like right in, in terms of like having an acute crisis perhaps.

Grant Freking: (08:44)
Mm-Hmm. . Sure. And you mentioned, you've mentioned to me before that even positive changes can, can bring about some level of stress.

LaSondra Wayne: (08:51)
Absolutely. Absolutely.

Grant Freking: (08:52)
You know, you get a promotion or you, if you're a student, perhaps you gain, you become president of your club.

LaSondra Wayne: (08:57)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (08:57)
Well it's a great thing, but it also can bring about more stress in your life.

LaSondra Wayne: (09:01)
Absolutely. Even being close to graduation, .

Grant Freking: (09:03)
Right. Exactly.

LaSondra Wayne: (09:03)
Can be really, really stressful.

Grant Freking: (09:05)
At the onset of everything you've ever worked for is still an amount of stress that you have to work through and built some resilience and grit. Right?

LaSondra Wayne: (09:10)
Exactly.

Grant Freking: (09:10)
What are some common stigmas or barriers to treatment that you encounter in your work?

LaSondra Wayne: (09:16)
Again, that depends on the culture, the person, the individual, their family life and the meanings and, you know, messages that they've gotten about mental health. But, I would say commonly sometimes students are feeling like their issues aren't that serious. You know, like, why do I need to talk to somebody? I'm overreacting. That sort of thing. There's a lot of stigma around just asking for help or, even, you know, telling someone your business, that's a big one for some people. If they've grown up, keeping family business within the family to, you know, talk to somebody that you don't know all that well, about very intimate things that are happening in your life, can be, can be challenging. There are stigmas associated with being male and needing support or being, you know, of a particular ethnicity and needing support. It can be generationally sometimes, you know, parents are like, well, when I was your age, you know, I didn't, we didn't deal with depression or that wasn't a thing. And so like, what's wrong with your generation?

Grant Freking: (10:37)
Make them feel a little guilty about being themselves.

LaSondra Wayne: (10:39)
Right, exactly. Or just not even wanting to, sometimes people are afraid of who might find out that they're getting support. Is my professor gonna know or is my advisor gonna know? and so we always emphasize that our services are confidential, so that could be a barrier to them getting help.

Grant Freking: (10:58)
Right. And if they've never received anything in this type of realm before about.

LaSondra Wayne: (11:01)
Mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (11:02)
meeting with someone like you, they may not, I mean, I think I may have assumed that like, oh, this was probably confidential, but that may not be true of all students that come in, especially ones who may not be used to this sort of ecosystem, maybe new to Cincinnati, Ohio or the whole experience. I mean, may, may not assume, they could assume it's this trickles out and that could be in trouble for this, as you mentioned.

LaSondra Wayne: (11:19)
Exactly.

Grant Freking: (11:19)
Right. So what sort of resources are available at Lindner and UC for students with mental health needs?

LaSondra Wayne: (11:26)
I'll start with just what I typically am able to offer, which is individual therapy. We also have a wellness group here for international students that's actually open to all UC students. It's just housed here at Lindner. I do various outreaches. We offer QPR, which is, suicide prevention training, for faculty, staff and students. You know, we do, crisis response, you know, maybe there is a loss that occurs within our community here at Lindner. We can offer support to classrooms. Oh, and I also offer consultation to faculty and staff. So even though my services are specifically directed towards students, there may be a student concern that comes up. And so a faculty member may reach out to me and, ask for some consultation around how to handle a student concern, and I can offer that to them.

Grant Freking: (12:27)
Sure. What about the, what about the Let's talk sessions? 'cause I've heard.

LaSondra Wayne: (12:30)
mm-Hmm. .

Grant Freking: (12:30)
I've, I've seen some.

LaSondra Wayne: (12:31)
Oh, that's right.

Grant Freking: (12:32)
Some, you know, advertisement, you know, not only in our building, but you know, through some of your work too. What's, what is, let's talk?

LaSondra Wayne: (12:39)
Mm-Hmm, . So Let's Talk actually is not technically therapy. It's our brief consultations that students can sign up for through bookings. They can go to the CAPS website and literally schedule themselves for a 20 minute consultation. So let's say they just got a poor grade and they're struggling with the outcome, they can set that up. And we offer, let's talk in person as well as virtually. Now, mine specifically are, are 100% virtual, but I am a part of a larger team at main CAPS and

Grant Freking: (13:16)
mm-hmm. .

LaSondra Wayne: (13:16)
you know, and so they don't necessarily have to see me. They can see anyone on our team who offers it or their schedule coincides with the students' availability.

Grant Freking: (13:27)
Cool. And what about free or low cost resources for students? I think that I think includes some, some of the things you just mentioned. Mm-Hmm.

LaSondra Wayne: (13:33)
. So yes, Let's Talk is free. We also have free case management for students. But in terms of our therapy, the rapid access consultation or our single sessions are always free. Our groups are completely free. And our individual therapy, the first three sessions are free as well. But, in terms of making it more accessible to students and removing the barriers, we also offer, waived, we can waive fees depending on, you know, what is their presenting issue. Like for instance, students who receive Pell Grants don't have to pay, or students who have experienced gender-based violence and are part of our Arise program, they don't have to pay. So, and then sometimes just students don't have it, and we can work with them and either significantly reduce the cost or, waive those costs.

Grant Freking: (14:34)
Excellent. That's, that's so refreshing to hear. I knew about it, but it's, it's, it's another thing just to hear it from, from the, the expert that it's, you know, there's so many free and great resources available to students. And so how can students schedule an appointment with you in CAPS?

LaSondra Wayne: (14:48)
Okay. So what they can do is call the main office, on the back of every Bearcat id that's faculty, staff, and students. The CAPS number is there. So they call that number and they will reach our front desk, administrative staff who has access to all of our schedules, and they can be scheduled at, you know, my next availability. We don't have a waitlist for students, so sometimes people, you know, traditionally have to wait weeks sometimes to see a therapist, but because of our single session model, we can see students within 24 to 48 hours usually.

Grant Freking: (15:31)
Right on. And that number is 5 1 3 5 5 6 0 6 4 8. I'll say it again at the outro, but that's 5 1 3 5 5 6 0 6 4 8 for any student that needs to meet with a counselor. Now let's end, end with some really positive news that just is almost breaking news. I think UC recently received a grant from the Ohio Department of Higher Education that allows us to offer mental health funding through June, 2025. But more can you say about this development and what exactly does it mean?

LaSondra Wayne: (15:57)
, I'm really excited about this. So what that means is that we have even more of an opportunity to remove the barriers. So sometimes students, even with all of the resources that are available, they may still be left with a bill. Perhaps they're taking a medication and they have to pay for it monthly, or, you know, they got some assessment done, and even the copay is still outside of their reach. And so we can provide up to, you know, with this money up to $2,500 per student to take care of some of those costs. And that can even include transportation to appointments or childcare even to, get, you know, therapy and things like that.

Grant Freking: (16:45)
My thanks to Dr. LaSondra Wayne for joining me on this episode of Bearcats Mean Business. To contact CAPS, please call 5 1 3 5 5 6 0 6 4 8. That's 5 1 3 5 5 6 0 6 4 8. Contact information can also be found on the back of your Bearcat ID card. If you are in need of emergency medical attention, please call 9 1 1. Please subscribe, rate and review Bearcats Mean Business on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Thanks for tuning in. Go Bearcats.

Grant Freking: (00:00)
With the early action deadline for prospective college students to apply for scholarships and certain programs looming on December 1st, there's no better time than the present than to address the top admissions questions that are surely on the minds of prospective Lindner students and their parents or guardians. On this episode of Bearcats Mean Business, two members of Lindner's undergraduate admissions team answer the questions weighing on your mind as you fill out the common app. With that welcome assistant director Kendra Byrd, and associate director Ashley McFarland.

Kendra Byrd: (00:29)
Hi everyone. My name is Kendra Byrd and this is my third year working in Lindner, but 19th year in higher education. And I enjoy working with students, families, and other supporters in their college search process.

Ashley McFarland: (00:40)
Hi everyone, my name is Ashley McFarland and I have worked at Lindner for 13 years now. Prior to coming to Lindner, I worked out in corporate America at Nielsen using my undergraduate degree from Lindner in marketing and international business. I'm a proud alum of Lindner and our team, and I'm thrilled to be here with you today.

Grant Freking: (00:54)
Thanks to both of you for being here today. First, an important calendar note for those filling out the common app. This year's a weird one. So this year, December 1st is the immediate Sunday after Thanksgiving, which means most students will be out of school the week prior to the deadline. So it's best to apply early to make sure you meet the December 1st deadline. Ashley and Kendra both nodding here. We don't have a video component yet, but they're both nodding along. Now let's begin with a popular concern. How does Linder's undergraduate admissions team review a student's application?

Ashley McFarland: (01:22)
That's a great question. So at Linder we review your application holistically, which means we're looking at your high school transcript, including your math trajectory, involvement in leadership, your personal essay, and even your statement that you give us.

Kendra Byrd: (01:34)
Yeah, this is not gonna be the time to be modest. Make sure you are sharing as much as you can in your application to allow us to get to know you. And if you think your test score is indicative of your academic ability, you can submit your test score to Lindner. But the Lindner College of Business is test optional through 2025.

Ashley McFarland: (01:50)
I think one question we get asked a lot is if there's a good thing to add to the essay or to write your essay on or what should your personal statement be? And we always answer them with your personal statement should answer the question, why do you wanna study business? And your personal essay would be anything that you wanna talk about.

Kendra Byrd: (02:06)
It's our way to get to know who you are. It's your voice in this process.

Grant Freking: (02:10)
Right. No, I think the phrase test optional can be confusing for some folks, which is understandable. What does test optional mean in the context of applying to Lindner?

Kendra Byrd: (02:19)
So test optional means you do not have to submit a test score to be admitted to the Lindner College of Business. In the common application, you will be asked if you want UC to consider your test score. If you do not, please just click, do not consider my test score. We will review your application without looking at that component.

Ashley McFarland: (02:36)
Kendra, I think some students and a lot of parents might worry that submitting their test score will somehow negatively influence their admission decision, but that's just not the case. If you're unsure about whether to submit your test score, you can just reach out to our admissions team and we're happy to talk you through that. As context, students that submitted their test scores last year, the middle 50% range was a 25 to a 30 ACT and that means 1200 to 1380 SAT.

Grant Freking: (02:59)
Alright, so how, how often do you guys hear from prospective students and their parents during the week? Just was like maybe cold phone calls, cold emails, and how does that work for you guys?

Kendra Byrd: (03:08)
More common would be emails than phone calls.

Grant Freking: (03:09)
Mm-Hmm .

Kendra Byrd: (03:10)
But we hear from multiple families and students on a daily basis. We have a general inbox that we check multiple times a day and we are happy to answer any question. And the thing, when we have our daily visits, which are twice a week, we tell people, email us no matter what you think it is, how big or small, we'd rather answer a question a hundred times in the same day than to have someone miss out on an opportunity to find out more about the process and hopefully feel more comfortable with it at the end of the day.

Ashley McFarland: (03:36)
Yeah, I think that's really fair. Kendra. I feel like we answer the question all the time about whether to submit a test score and parents are even more nervous it seems than students. Mm-Hmm . But I think because when they applied to school you had to submit a test score. So I think now that you don't have to submit one, they're a little bit nervous to say, does that mean I just don't submit it? What if I took it? Shouldn't I submit it? And it's like, no, if you don't like that test score, it's not indicative of your academic performance. Don't submit it, it's fine. We'll review everything else.

Kendra Byrd: (04:00)
It's just another data point. Yep.

Grant Freking: (04:02)
Okay. Now what about available scholarships at Linder and UC and other programs who have deadlines centered around the December 1st deadline I just talked about?

Ashley McFarland: (04:10)
I absolutely love scholarships because this is how I personally paid for school. So most of our scholarship opportunities within Lindner come from our Lindner Business Honors program, our Inclusive Excellence Showcase, and Empowerment Day for Women in Business. All of these programs have the December one deadline and will hold events in the spring for scholarship consideration.

Kendra Byrd: (04:26)
It's also important to know that all of these scholarships can be combined with the Cincinnatus scholarship. That's the central umbrella award, at the University of Cincinnati and everything around scholarships here at UC, no matter Lindner or Cincinnatus or another program has a December one deadline. So get those applications in

Ashley McFarland: (04:44)
And I think students always wanna know, how can I get more money? And we always tell students, apply, apply, apply. Just apply outside of the University of Cincinnati and Lindner, so that you have control over the money that comes in. I know my goal with going to school was to not have student debt and I think that's a lot of parents and student goal. And so if that's your goal then you need to apply for a ton of scholarships and know that you're not gonna get all of 'em. But I think the more you can get every 500 or a thousand dollars that comes in is a 500 or a thousand dollars you don't have to pay for.

Kendra Byrd: (05:10)
I echo that wholeheartedly. Scholarships are how I paid for my college experience and again, there's no scholarship that is too small, whether it's $250 or $500, it's all that money that works for you. I think a lot of people do expect to have a bigger scholarship, but most people are getting smaller scholarships and combining those and that's how they take away from the cost of higher education.

Grant Freking: (05:29)
Okay. Let's shift to a subject area that I was certainly not very strong in during my high school and college days, mathematics. Is there a math requirement to get to Lindner and if so, what is it?

Kendra Byrd: (05:39)
I had the same experience, Grant . Yes there is. So to get into Lindner, you need pre-calculus. We understand that not everyone will have the access to pre-calculus in high school. So there are transition pathways available for students who start in another academic college at UC. Most students that do not have pre-calc start in exploratory studies in arts and sciences. It's important for you to take math in your first semester at UC so you can transition into Lindner as quickly as possible. You will take two calculus courses as part of your Lindner degree requirements. So staying on that math trajectory is really gonna be what sets you up for success.

Grant Freking: (06:11)
Okay. So it's precalc you gotta have.

Ashley McFarland: (06:13)
Gotta have that precalc and I think all students are nervous about calculus. I think I was, it was definitely my least favorite class here at UC, but I think it's just part of the degree requirement. So we need to make sure to to get that in.

Grant Freking: (06:24)
Sure, now co-op or cooperative education is one of our pride and joys here at Lindner. Lindner's co-op program allows students to explore their career options and build their skills, resumes and professional networks through paid professional work experiences. What are the essential facts about CO-OP that prospective students and their parents or guardians need to know?

Ashley McFarland: (06:42)
This topic is what we talk about more than anything else. And I feel like Kendra and I could sit here for hours and just talk about what is co-op giving examples, but it's definitely the number one reason students are looking at the Lindner College of Business and Co-op is essentially experiential learning. So taking what you're learning in the classroom and applying it outside of the classroom to test drive that major and to make money. And so Linder launched Universal Co-op last year as part of our passion for helping students figure out what area of business they wanna pursue. It really encourages students to test drive that major, build professional networks and fine-tune their interests. I think one thing we talk about with students a lot, especially in our daily visits is that you are still a student while you're on co-op, but you're getting paid full time, doing something that you hopefully love to do. And even if you don't love to do it, it's great to find that out within the setting of just working for a semester.

Grant Freking: (07:28)
I think that's a critical point is you find out what you like and what you don't like through these work experiences where you get paid.

Kendra Byrd: (07:34)
It's the real world with a safety net.

Ashley McFarland: (07:36)
Yeah.

Kendra Byrd: (07:36)
It's a great opportunity for students and while students are on full-time co-op placement, they are not paying tuition at UC. This allows students to fully immerse themselves into the experience and make sure it is a company that they would see themselves in in the future.

Ashley McFarland: (07:49)
I think it's almost more important for them to find out what they don't like sometimes.

Kendra Byrd: (07:51)
Absolutely.

Ashley McFarland: (07:51)
'cause so many students say, I have no idea what I want to do when I leave with my degree. And so it gives them a chance to say, oh, I didn't really like that because, and have actual reasons that our career advisors and coaches can help them work through to get a better co-op placement the next time to fine tune that of where they wanna work so that when they get their full-time offer, it's something that they absolutely love.

Kendra Byrd: (08:10)
Absolutely. It's fine tuning and having that informed decision making. Yeah. While you're surrounded by a wonderful support system who's gonna help you figure it out for yourself.

Grant Freking: (08:17)
You talked about students who may not know what they're interested in. What about if students are unsure about what they want to major in entering Lindner? I'm sure that's a common, very common thought process.

Kendra Byrd: (08:26)
It is a very common question that we get. A lot of students asking that questions and a lot of parents waiting anxiously to hear that . So it's okay to be business undecided. We're commonly asked if this will cause any issues in the timing of earning a degree, and the answer is no. Our most popular major was business undecided for the incoming class of 2024 and beyond business undecided. Our two most popular majors are two of the most popular majors across UC, and those are marketing and finance.

Grant Freking: (08:52)
Okay.

Ashley McFarland: (08:54)
I think Lindner's first year experience is always what we use as kind of that way to tell them that it's okay because they're going to take classes that talk about multiple degrees within Lindner and not only show them the academic side of things, so what are you gonna learn in school and what are the faculty gonna teach you? But then also what kind of co-op rotations are you gonna see from that and what would it, you know, do for you? So for business majors, the lower core of curriculum provides that foundation for students to take undergraduate, like introductory, courses for their majors. But no matter what you come in as even business undecided, you will take those same courses. And so it allows you to kind of move around and be able to switch your major as well, which I think a lot of students ask us, can we switch our major? And you absolutely can.

Grant Freking: (09:32)
Now, before we close, let's offer some overall tips and advice for navigating the admissions process.

Ashley McFarland: (09:37)
Absolutely. So as I think back to my own experience and how much we work with students, I always think to myself, use your resources. There are so many people out there that can help you and you have no idea how people can help you. Whether that be how to apply to school the best way, how to get the most out of a scholarship or even your next co-op rotation. You have no idea where those connections are gonna come from. So just use the resources across the board, ask the questions to the students and the staff members that are there. I just recommend using those resources as much as you possibly can.

Kendra Byrd: (10:04)
Absolutely. My bit of advice would be about visiting campus. That's thinking about my personal experience, students I've helped professionally and then the kids in my life. Visiting a campus helps you understand what's truly gonna be the right fit for you. You can learn a lot online and from people who've attended the school, a variety of resources, but finding out if it's the best fit for you, stepping foot on campus, seeing what the campus culture and community is, what that feeling is. Are you excited? Are you nervous? Is it a little bit of both or is it a, ooh, I don't know if this is right for me. Seeing that will help you figure out what the best fit will be. For UC and specifically for Lindner, we have tons of options. On Mondays and Fridays, we hold college closeups that are tied to a campus tour.

Kendra Byrd: (10:43)
So not only do you see the entire campus, but you spend time with our staff and our student ambassadors learning about what we have to offer both inside and outside the classroom at Lindner. We also have shadow days where you can meet with other prospective students, sit in on a class and then have lunch. It's always great to get a free meal and see what it's like on campus that way. And then we will have Admitted Bearcat Days in the spring, so students who have been offered admission are thinking about it in a little bit different way. There's a different series of events for them, and even if one of those dates don't work for you, reach out to us. We are happy to talk to you while we're here.

Grant Freking: (11:15)
My thanks to Kendra Byrd and Ashley McFarland for joining me on this episode of Bearcats Mean Business. A reminder that the early action deadline to apply for scholarships and other programs like Lindner Business Honors is December 1st.

Grant Freking: (11:26)
As Kendra said, we would love for you to visit us here at Lindner to learn more about our programs and opportunities. We offer Lindner College Close-up sessions most Monday mornings at 11 and Friday afternoons at one. You can also shadow a current Lindner student to get a more personalized experience with us. To inquire about these opportunities or if you have questions about gaining admission to Lindner, please contact the Lindner undergraduate admissions team at business.ug.uc.edu. That's business.ug.uc.edu. Finally, please subscribe, rate and review Bearcats Mean Business wherever you listen to your podcasts. Thanks for tuning in. Go Bearcats.