Message from the Dean

At the Carl H. Lindner College of Business, we face many of the same tensions as other institutions of higher education. And yet, in line with my long-standing research focus, I value these points of friction as opportunities for learning and change. At Lindner, we fuse innovation and tradition, access and excellence, theory and practice, and individuality and inclusion. Our college strategy harnesses Lindner’s distinctions.

My thanks to our faculty, staff, students, alumni, employers and community partners who helped focus and elevate our vision. Lindner’s purpose of empowering business problem solvers propels our objective of becoming the nation’s leading co-op business school. To this end, we leverage five strategic pillars:

• Strengthen experiential learning — Experience matters! Driving student success, we embed experiential learning within integrated academic, co-curricular and professional experiences, including our unique universal co-op program.
• Cultivate engaged experts — Lindner faculty and staff are our core. To nurture our problem-solving culture, we prioritize their development and interdisciplinary expertise in analytics, entrepreneurship and leadership.
• Build valued partnerships — By locking arms with our alumni, business and community partners, we provide highly valued talent, learning opportunities and professional networks.
• Ensure financial sustainability — To power our strategic ambitions, we apply data-informed and innovative approaches that grow and efficiently allocate our resources.
• Brand Lindner as the leading co-op business school — No longer a ‘hidden gem,’ Lindner aligns who we are and serve with how we showcase our distinctions and their impact.

This issue of Portfolio highlights milestones, moments and stories from the 2023-24 academic year at Lindner. Throughout, we showcase our excellence in experiential learning and the many pathways Lindner students traverse in and out of the classroom. After all, academic and hands-on experiences inspire transformational learning. By addressing real-world problems, we build resilience, confidence and skills. Our various forms of co-op available to students are amplified by project-based learning (capstones and the First-Year Experience), entrepreneurial endeavors (student start-ups and pitch competitions), study abroad and study away (international and domestic travel programs), leadership practice (student organizations, government, social and professional fraternities), and beyond.

Our strategy builds upon our strong foundations as we innovate to meet tomorrow’s business demands. As we fuel our momentum, please engage. Come visit Lindner, learn how to hire a co-op or graduating student, or reach out to explore other ways to get involved and to keep learning.

Sincerely,