36 Business Professionals Receive MBA Chance of a Lifetime from Lake Forest Graduate School of Management

LAKE FOREST, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, Lake Forest Graduate School of Management (LFGSM) has announced that 36 business professionals in the Chicago area have begun MBA classes at their Lake Forest and Schaumburg campuses for free. These 36 individuals are winners of the “Write Your Own Future” MBA Scholarship Contest — an extraordinary opportunity through which unemployed business professionals were invited to submit essays and resumes between March 21^st and April 30^th. Contest winners were selected to then participate in admissions interviews, after which 36 were chosen to pursue their MBA studies for free, while they actively seek full-time employment and until they land their next positions.

“We’re thrilled to have 36 accomplished professionals joining our student body through this initiative, and we wish them the greatest success in their studies and their careers.”

“We were overwhelmed by the sentiment shared by the Chicago-area business community when we announced this scholarship opportunity — the gratitude and surprise were widespread and heartfelt,” said John Popoli, LFGSM President & CEO. “Through this scholarship program, we wanted to send a message that in-transition professionals have a lot to offer — now and in the future — in their communities, in the workforce and in the classroom. We expected to meet high-caliber professionals through this initiative, and our expectations were exceeded. The scholarship committee selected 36 individuals to receive full-tuition, renewable MBA scholarships. Among those recipients are accomplished professionals from top organizations, across vibrant industries and representing several areas of functional expertise.”

The awarding of such a large group of MBA scholarships to unemployed professionals is unprecedented, at LFGSM or anywhere in American graduate business education. Putting LFGSM’s real-world, results-oriented MBA education within reach of 36 experienced, out-of-work professionals is the School’s way of making a meaningful contribution to the business community that LFGSM was founded to serve. Providing this unique opportunity is consistent with the School’s DNA as a not-for-profit regional business school.

Scholarship recipients, in alphabetical order, are:

Jose Amata

Joaquin Barry

Suzanne Batridge

Dennis Bermudez

Ronald Branch

Darlene Cuker

Anna Cvetanovski

Juliana Duan

David Ellstrand

Karina Formento

Scott Gallier

Duncan Groebe

Ping Han

Howard Humphrey

Kajsa Johnson

Kathrina Johnson

Andrew Jones

Michael Kind

Richard Komas

Michael Mann

Harold Marten

Eileen Moore-Oleksy

Valeriya Petrova

Janna Philipp

James Ramos

Robert Rampale

Albert Shumov

Baxter Swilley

Thomas Taylor

Jack Thompson

Joseph Thompson

Alita Tucker

Collins Yearwood

Yvonne Zaffron

Pearl Zhao

Joan Zietlow

“I am very excited about the opportunity to pursue my Lake Forest MBA,” said scholarship recipient Suzanne Batridge, an accomplished supply chain management professional who most recently worked for Siemens IT Solutions & Services. “This is a wonderful way for LFGSM to contribute to the community, and I am grateful for the chance to reinvigorate my career with the kind of broad business know-how that Lake Forest is so well known for.”

Winners for these full tuition scholarships (which renew each term they remain unemployed and actively pursuing a position) were selected based on their previous levels of responsibility, career progression, performance in the admissions interview, and strength of their essays on the topic, “How a Lake Forest MBA will benefit my career, my future employer, and my community.”

“I want to learn business and management skills that will allow me to evaluate and shepherd novel and emerging healthcare technologies toward successful adoption and implementation,” said scholarship recipient Duncan Groebe, a PhD scientist who most recently worked for Abbott, in his contest essay. “I have evaluated and developed novel technological applications that promised substantial improvements in drug discovery throughput and tissue-specific toxicological understanding. However, these projects failed to take permanent root, in part, because I lacked the understanding of how a project needs to be supported, fostered, and justified in order to be accepted and put into practice. Earning my Lake Forest MBA is an opportunity to bridge that gap and to make a meaningful difference in people’s health.”

The recipients of the “Write Your Own Future” MBA Scholarship Contest began their MBA studies in June by taking their first class, Executive Success Skills, at campuses in Lake Forest and Schaumburg. The students will have the opportunity to progress through the MBA program at their own pace, with most scholarship recipients finishing their MBAs in two to four years. “Lake Forest Graduate School of Management offered this scholarship opportunity in recognition that the idling of top talent not only hinders the affected business professionals’ contributions, but also narrows the future leadership bench strength that will be available to the Chicago-area business community in a rebounding economy,” said President Popoli. “We’re thrilled to have 36 accomplished professionals joining our student body through this initiative, and we wish them the greatest success in their studies and their careers.”

Individuals who are interested in supporting this scholarship initiative through a tax-deductible gift to LFGSM can do so at www.WriteYourOwnFuture.com. To learn more about Lake Forest Graduate School of Management, visit www.LFGSM.edu.

Lake Forest Graduate School of Management was established in 1946 and offers the Chicago area’s premier MBA program for experienced professionals. LFGSM is currently accepting applications for its MBA program in Lake Forest and Schaumburg. LFGSM is the only independent, not-for-profit, accredited graduate business school in the Chicago area, and offers its part-time MBA program on weeknights, Saturdays and now during the weekday. LFGSM also offers a full spectrum of corporate learning solutions, such as certificate programs and customized workshops, to area companies. Learn more at www.LFGSM.edu.