The latest installment in the #EcclesExperience film series is all about impact – how the David Eccles School of Business impacts the lives of students, our community and the world around us.
First Ascent Scholar student Florecita Martinez Torres shows us how students who are trailblazers can carve a path to a new future at the Eccles School.
We highlight how the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute — one of two institutes housed within the Eccles School — helps inform decisions of Utah policymakers and game changers. The Institute’s Director, Natalie Gochnour, who also teaches economics at the U, serves as a powerful example of impact in Utah’s public and private sectors. Governor Gary Herbert references the 2016 Economic Report to the Governor produced by the Gardner Policy Institute.
Finally, we visit with Patrick Mullen, director of the Sorenson Impact Center, one of five centers at the Eccles School and the U.S. leader in collegiate impact investing, to see how student-led investments have paid off in countries and cultures around the globe.
Recent grad Vishnu Ravikumar, who managed social investments on behalf of the Center and now works for Uber in Salt Lake City, joins the conversation to talk about ‘the X factor’ he found at the Eccles School.
Join our guide, Demetrius, as he presents three unique ways the Eccles School impacts lives.
Video Transcript:
Demetrius: Hey, how’s it going? You wouldn’t know this by looking at Florecita, but she is the first in her family to attend college. She is amazing. Florecita is part of a program at the David Eccles School of Business that helps first-generation college students with financial assistance and even provides student mentors and a strong social network to help her graduate. And that’s just one of the programs that Eccles School has to make college possible for trailblazers and pioneers like Florecita. The David Eccles School of Business has a lasting impact on the lives of students, our community and the world at large.
Florecita: I always dreamed of going to college. I just didn’t know how I could afford it and I didn’t have anyone in my family who had done it. But once I found the First Ascent Scholars at the Eccles School, I saw how I could accomplish my dream of becoming a college graduate. I have met the most incredible people here — other students, program administrators and faculty. Not only am I earning a college degree, I’m breaking barriers and changing the future of my life and my family’s life forever. The future holds so many opportunities for me now.
Demetrius: Florecita is a rock star. Now let’s see how the initiatives of the Eccles School are a part of improving communities throughout Utah, communities just like Florecita’s. This is a college economics class. The professor is Natalie Gochnour. She has been teaching economic classes for more than 15 years while she had a successful career in the public and private sectors. As well as being Associate Dean, Natalie is the director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.
Natalie Gochnour: The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute helps business and community leaders make informed decisions. Recently we released the Economic Report to the Governor, the good news is this past year:
Governor Gary Herbert: “We actually became the number one performing economy for eight out of the 12 months of 2015.”
Demetrius: And by the way, did you know Forbes Magazine named the Utah the best state to do business five out of the last six years. You see, policies based on solid research create lasting positive impact on our community from Utah to impact investments overseas. Let’s take a look at the Sorenson Impact Center, the U.S. leader of impact investing on a collegiate level.
Patrick Mullen: The mission of the Sorenson Impact Center is to accelerate positive and sustainable social change by leveraging private capital for social good. Students who work with the center receive Wall Street-style training and venture investing. They research opportunities and advise investors and everything from clean energy in markets like India to education and healthcare technology in sub-Saharan Africa. Since 2013, their efforts have assisted more than 300 social entrepreneurs resulting in over $100 million in investments.
Narrator: One of the graduates of the Eccles School who spent two years working with the Sorenson Impact Center is Vishnu Ravikumar. He was responsible for conducting due diligence and making investment recommendations for foreign and domestic investments, totaling up to $16.5 million while still an Eccles student. Vishnu now works for…
Vishnu: Uber.
Demetrius: He created the successful Uber Ski product right here in Salt Lake City.
Vishnu: When I decided to get my MBA, I looked at business schools that had the X factor, something that would really set me apart. And the David Eccles School of Business had exactly what I was looking for, the two largest student-run investment groups in the US, perhaps the world. A personalized high-caliber education and the phenomenon experiential learning opportunities at Eccles, have given me a solid foundation, a strong competitive edge and some great memories.
Narrator: These are just some of the ways the University of Utah, David Eccles School of Business has an impact on the lives of students and communities at home and abroad and through investments that help change the world.
Florecita: Hey, how’s it going?
Demetrius: Hey Florecita, how you doing?
Student: Good, you?
Demetrius: Good. You know what? You should really talk to this guy in here.
Florecita: OK. Hey, how are you?
Demetrius: And there you have it, sometimes impact just comes full circle.
Florecita: How will you leave your mark on the world? We invite you to join us at the Eccles School. Come earn a degree and be in a place that’ll help you have an impact on the world around you. It’s all part of the Eccles Experience. I’ll see you on campus.