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Monday, 16 July 2007 |
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In addition to recognizing the most successful mock-company, one outstanding student is selected as the recipient of the Ron McNair Leadership Award. This year, Thomas Barkley “Kley” Sippel III, a Simpsonville resident and rising senior at Southside Christian School in Greenville, was selected to receive the $3,000 scholarship contributed by SCANA, which may be used at the college or university of Sippel’s choice.
Established in memory of Lake City native and astronaut Ron McNair, the Ron McNair Leadership Award recognizes a Business Week student who consistently demonstrates exceptional leadership abilities. Sippel impressed the advisers with his maturity in working through an ethical dilemma his mock-company faced.
“In order for our economic system to function properly, respect for our customers, employees, authorities, and standards must not only exist, but be displayed in all actions the company pursues,” Sippel said when posed with the dilemma. “Integrity differentiates a leader and if that leader can instill in his company this respected integrity, then he has lead the company to a new level. This foundational integrity must not be compromised.”
While the Business Week experience is invaluable for the students involved, S.C. Business Week is significant for the future of business in South Carolina as well, according to Bill Harmon, one of S.C. Business Week’s most long-standing professional advisers.
Harmon is the director in billing and account management for the Columbia campus of Colonial Life and Accident Insurance Company and 2007 was his ninth year participating with S.C. Business Week. On a personal note, Harmon said two of his own three children have gone through the program.
“One of our goals through Business Week is the retention of the brightest students in the state,” Harmon said. “Businesses, like Colonial, are the benefactors if we are able to educate our students and then keep them in South Carolina. These students are applying skills that we often see lacking in new hires—including teamwork, productivity skills and communication skills. When a new employee comes in the door with these skills, companies spend less time and money training them.”
Business Week is sponsored by the S. C. Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with the S.C. Bankers Association, the state Department of Education, the S.C. Council on Economic Education, and the S.C. Association of School Administrators. Qualified students attend Business Week on scholarships made available through companies and organizations from around the state. Students apply for the program through their schools, which they may do any time during the school year until the late April deadline.
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