VSU SIFE Receives Awards at Nationals

VALDOSTA - The Students in Free Enterprise from Valdosta State University achieved the honor of first runner-up in the semi-final round at the SIFE National Exposition held May 13-15 in Chicago, Ill.

In competition against the top eight universities in the country, the VSU SIFE team performed a 24-minute presentation highlighting the organization’s accomplishments during the past academic year. Bernard McCombs, Laquita Kelley, Meg Garcia, John Dillard, Judy Bernadin and Nikki Mitchell represented the membership of more than 150 as the presenting team, each detailing the organization’s forty-nine projects and over 13,000 hours volunteered through service-learning projects. At the exposition, the presenting team and more than 30 other members participated in a job fair and networked with some of the top corporate executives in the world - an experience that earned many students internships and jobs opportunities.

Dr. Ralph Allen, Dean of the Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, was awarded the Most Supportive Dean of the Year by Douglas R. Conant, president & CEO of Campbell Soup Company. The award recognizes the university dean who did the most outstanding job of supporting the SIFE team on his/her campus. The VSU SIFE team submitting a two-page letter listing the many ways he was deserving of the award, signed by all members, in nominating Allen for the award.

Dr. L. Wayne Plumly Jr., VSU SIFE Faculty Advisor, was inducted into the SIFE Hall of Fame, an honor bestowed on only one or two worthy advisors each year. Plumly founded the VSU team in 1994 and has contributed to the team’s fourteen consecutive regional championships. The VSU SIFE team also has four top 20 finishes, three top 10 finishes and three final four appearances at nationals. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame for “notable contributions, service, and commitment to Valdosta State University’s SIFE Team and to the advancement of the entire SIFE organization.”

“It is an honor to work with students that are highly skilled, dedicated, and most of all have a large heart,” Plumly said. “SIFE students carry a full academic load, work to support their way through college, and still have time to contribute 5-10 hours a week making our community a better place to live for all of its citizens.”

For more information about VSU’s SIFE team and it’s service-learning projects, visit the Web site, www.valdosta.edu/sife , or call e-mail Plumly at lwplumly@valdosta.edu .