When you go to school with some 30,000 students, being named among the Top 100 IUPUI undergraduates is a big deal. Fourteen Kelley School of Business Indianapolis students have received such an honor.
A record number 1,410 students were nominated for this year’s Top 100, one of IUPUI’s most prestigious recognitions. A panel of alumni, faculty and staff select the top students based on their achievements in the classroom, co-curricular activities and community service. The top 20 students, as well as the most outstanding female and male students, will be announced at the recognition dinner on Friday, April 11, 2014 at the Indianapolis Marriott hotel.
Kelley Indianapolis students in the Top 100 include:
Aaron Buchanan is a junior majoring in finance, supply chain management and international studies. He is a member of the Honors Advisory Board and has been involved with Entrepreneurship Club. He actively volunteers with his church and Indiana Defenders of Greyhounds. He is employed as an inventory control analyst with Fastenal at the Great Lakes Regional Distribution Center. This summer, Buchanan is excited to serve as a finance analyst intern with the Cummins Emission Solutions Division in Columbus, Ind. He hopes to obtain a full-time position with Cummins after graduation. Eventually, he hopes to earn an MBA and open his own business.
Rishi Chandra is a senior majoring in supply chain management, accounting and international studies with a minor in economics. He hopes to one day own his own business. He currently works on campus for the Office of International Affairs as an international student ambassador and has held internships at Cummins and IUPUI’s Center for Academic Research. Chandra is highly involved on campus, holding various positions in the Asian Student Union, serving as a peer mentor, a IUPUI Regatta committee member, and as an alternate Spring Break trip leader.
Ryan Eldridge is a senior majoring in marketing. He has accumulated more than 500 volunteer hours during his time at Kelley. Eldridge participated in Kelley’s study abroad trip to Strasbourg, France, and he interned at DigitalRelevance. After finishing summer classes, Eldridge plans to spend time with his family and then jump into his career. He hopes to pursue a custom shoe design venture that he began his freshman year with the help of a professor and several Kelley students.
Kourtney Givens is a senior majoring in business management. In addition to serving as a resident assistant on campus, she has been involved with the Student African American Sisterhood, Students Taking Academic Responsibility mentoring group, Women in Business and Alpha Lambda Delta/Phi Eta Sigma honor societies. After graduation, Givens hopes to pursue her master’s degree in social work.
Cristina Grimany is a senior majoring in organizational leadership and supervision in the School of Engineering and Technology with a business minor from the Kelley School. She is president of the School of Engineering and Technology Student Council, a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and event coordinator for the Society of Human Resources Management. Grimany works as a part-time employee in the Engineering and Technology student services office. After graduation, she plans to attend graduate school at IUPUI.
Alexus Laird is a junior majoring in accounting and finance. She has been a member of IUPUI’s swimming and diving team for the past three years. Currently, Laird is a captain and serves as the Student Athlete Advisory Committee representative for the swim team. She recently started the pledge process for the Delta Sigma Pi-Kappa Sigma Chapter and currently holds the position as pledge president. After graduation, she plans to continue her business studies and work toward the required 150 credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. Laird eventually plans to move to Fort Wayne, Ind. where her family resides, and hopes to work as an accountant for Steel Dynamics.
Jhalak Patel is a junior majoring in accounting, finance and international studies. Patel is involved in various student organizations such as: Delta Sigma Pi, Student Organization for Alumni Relations, Timmy Global Health, and the Indian Student Cultural Association. She is a Twenty First Century Scholars mentor and a peer assistant at University College. Patel is a first-generation college student and attributes her academic success to the encouragement of her parents.
Lynn Pham is a senior majoring in accounting and finance, and she works at Holland House headquarters and Central Warehouse as an accountant. In the past, Pham has held internships at Eli Lilly and Company and the Naval Facilities Engineering Command in Maryland. She is executive marketing officer with the KSBI Accounting Association, a brother of Delta Sigma Pi and a member of Kelley Indianapolis Cares. Pham plans to take the CPA exam after graduation and, eventually, earn a master’s degree in accounting and finance.
Kristin Pierce is a senior majoring in marketing and international studies. She is a member of the IUPUI women’s soccer team, a volunteer co-chair for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and a marketing research assistant for Kelley professor Mark Mayer. Upon graduation, Pierce will assume a position with Nielsen as a professional services analyst in Connecticut. During her time at Kelley, she has traveled to New York City, Washington D.C., and Copenhagen, Denmark. She also has served as an intern to the president pro tempore in the Indiana State Senate.
Lynnette Sauer is a junior majoring in management and international studies; she also is pursuing a painting major at the Herron School of Art and Design. Because of her double major in business and art, Sauer eventually hopes to gain experience in the arts management field, attend graduate school and own and operate an arts-related business. She has held internships the Art Bank Gallery and Sherman & Co. Public Relations. Sauer is involved in many campus organizations such as the IUPUI Regatta Steering Committee, Kelley Honors Advisory Board, Alpha Lambda Delta/Phi Eta Sigma Honor Societies, Academics for Civic Engagement and the Honors College peer mentoring program. She also is an avid blogger for Kelley BizBlog.
Sara Suarez is a senior majoring in marketing, supply chain management and international studies. During her time at Kelley, she has competed in two case competitions. She works at the IUPUI Campus Center and serves as a student representative for the IUPUI American Council on Education International Laboratory, a lead campus ambassador, and an International Club student advisor. Suarez plans to move to Louisville after graduation and apply for graduate school in 2015.
Randi Thompson is a junior majoring in management, marketing, supply chain management and international studies with a minor in leadership. She is the president of Jag Rage, a new spirit committee formed to increase student pride on campus and is involved with Alpha Lambda Delta/Phi Eta Sigma honor societies and the Kelley Peer Mentor program. She is a student employee in the Office of Educational Partnership and Student Advocacy, where she helps to plan and coordinate events and initiatives. After graduation, Thompson hopes to find an operations position near Austin, Texas.
Kristen Wesolowski is a senior majoring in accounting and finance. After completing an internship in 2013 at Ernst & Young, Wesolowski accepted a position as an auditor with the accounting firm in Nashville, Tenn. She works in the Kelley Indianapolis Advising Office and is a four-year member of Kelley Indianapolis Cares, having served as its president over the last year. Wesolowski also has been involved with the IUPUI Regatta Steering Committee. She is grateful to share this experience with her Kelley peers.
Kameron Willsey is a senior majoring in finance. He spends most of his extra time working around the Greek community at IUPUI. Willsey has held positions as president, vice president, finance chairman and social chairman of Phi Kappa Psi. He also has served a one-year term as the executive vice president of the Interfraternity Council, the governing body of all fraternities on campus. Upon graduation, Willsey hopes to secure a position within an established consulting firm or investments company in Chicago. He also foresees an MBA in his future.