PSU Magazine Winter 2003

Mentors help students trying to succeed in business Management practices at Standard lnsurance in Portland are strikingly different. There is dialogue , a give and take between managers and employees that Hui Min never experienced work– ing in her home country of China. Min is learning typical-but to her rernarkable-U.S. management prac– tices from Steve Caner '69, an assistant vi e president at The Standard (fo rmerly Standard lnsurance). Carter and Min are part of a mentor program through Portland State's School of Business Administration. Begun two years ago, the program pairs students with area business peo– ple who serve as coaches, teachers, role models, door openers, and friends to the students. "Portland has a welcoming and open business commu– nity," says Director Lisa Stevens, "so it doesn 't surprise me that the program is such a success." More than 100 students, both M.B.A. and undergraduate , arc work– ing with representatives from such companies as Bonneville Power, HR Northwest, lntel, KPMG , Nike, NW Natural, Procter & Gamble, Pacificorp, Tektronix, US Bank, Xerox, and The Standard. The program has doubled since its inception in January 2001, making it the largest business-focused mentor program in Oregon, says Stevens. Stu– dents and mentors meet at least six times during the year. Min and Carter meet monthly. Min has sat in on focus groups, project meetings, and manage– ment classes at The Standard. The pair have spent much of their time exploring the cultural practices of U.S. business. Min hopes to work in this country for a year beyond her June 2003 graduation but will ultimately return to her home– town, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, and start her own business, probably an English language schoo l. For Min, the mentor program has meant seeing classroom theory in prac– tice , and a benefit she never expected: growth in her own confidence. "Before starting the program, l thought , this mentor will have many years of business experience; I'm going to feel as if I know nothing," says Min. "But teve drew on my own expe ri– ences to see what l could bring to this new ve nue. He made me feel smarter and more confident. l was really sur– prised. " "Hui was a delight to get to know and help ," says Carter. 'Tve done a lot of nonprofit board work, but se ldom come in con tact with the individuals l was serving. Working one-on-one has been si mply more fun." The mentor program draws on alumni from the business school, such as Carter, but more than half the men– tors are not PSU graduates. "lt is a chance to give back," says Stevens, "but out mentors also get much in return-from practical coaching expe– rience to new contacts in the business community." For more information about the mentor program in the School of Busi– ness Administration, contact Stevens at 503-725-8001 or email careernet @ sba.pdx.edu. □ Smith Memorial gets name change and new entrance Smith Memorial Student Union sports a new name and a new vaulted entrance-changes that better reflect the impor– tance of the building to students. The name change-Smith Smith Memorial was named after Michael J. Smith, a stu– dent who helped the Portland State's G.E. College Bowl Learn win the popular question and answer show on national tele– Memorial Center to Smith Memorial Student Union-was the idea of last year's students, while the remodel places most student organizations in a central, visible location. Student offices now occupy a new second-floor balcony overlooking the Broadway entrance. Stu– dent offices also dominate the first floor suites along with Student Parent Ser– vices and the ASPSU Chil– dren's Center. Prominently placed in the new lobby are an information desk and the PSU Bo Office. The new Broadway entrance to Smith Union features a balcony surrounding the vaulted lobby. The build– ing is named after s tudent Michael] . Smith (right). vision in 1965. Few knew until after the broadcast that Smith was suffering from cystic fibrosis. He earned degrees in English and psychology and held a graduate assistantship in the English Department until his death in 1968 at the age of 24. ln 1969 the University LOok the unusual step of naming a building after Smith-the only building in the Oregon University System honoring a student. WLNTER 2003 PSU MAGAZINE 5