Richard Harrison (B'84) and his wife Susan are donating $500,000 to assist in underwriting the design and construction of US Green Building Council standards into the new addition of the Robins School. By building the addition with the latest standards for energy conservation and management, the new wing will advance the University's commitment to environmental sustainability.

Harrison, who has a personal interest in green technology, is fascinated by how something as simple as using LED lights at $50 per bulb can save ten times the purchase price, or $500 per LED light bulb, in energy consumption and traditional bulb replacements over the life of a single LED bulb. The Harrison's are hoping their gift will not only have an immediate impact on the environment, but that it will inspire students to take an interest in environment sustainability while raising awareness in the community.

"I have always believed in giving, at any level. The important thing is to always give back," said Harrison. "My interest in green technology started with intellectual curiosity and led to investments in a portfolio of "pure play" green technology companies. Gains from these investments are being used to fund our donation to the Robins School. Once I began researching and investing in green technology, it became clear to me that I needed to take a fresh look at my energy consumption habits and how something as small as an led light bulb can have such a positive impact on our environment."

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

The University of Richmond shares the Harrison's commitment to social and environmental responsibility and accountability. LEED certified buildings are esthetically pleasing, environmentally friendly, economically responsible, and trend-setting by encouraging others to model the efficiency and resourcefulness of the building.

Harrison is Vice President, Business Strategy and Corporate Development at Thomson Corp. A co-founder and former president and chairman of Global Securities Information, Inc. (GSI), Harrison sold GSI to Thomson Corp in 2005. A self professed entrepreneur since the age of ten, Harrison's background includes more than twenty years of experience building, designing and implementing market leading research tools for transactional legal professionals.

Experiential learning is a proven method for enhancing a student's college education. The Robins School has produced several programs in recent years that provide students with experiential learning opportunities. Our students have leveraged these activities into meaningful job market opportunities in both local and national companies. The newly created Center for Active Business Education (CABE) formalizes and expands these activities to give students resources and national recognition for their efforts.

The CABE is a novel center idea that is not found at other universities. There are university programs that offer students practical experience, such as internships, externships or case studies, but no school offers an organized center directed towards development of marketable knowledge skills, which are then evaluated in a national or regional forum or competition. The CABE sets the Robins School apart from other business schools because of its unique emphasis on evaluation of results in external forums.

The CABE will support active learning programs that are student-driven and have a competitive component. Students from our Junior/Senior Analysts program and our Student-Managed Investment Fund (SMIF) fund managers will compete annually in the Redefining Investment Strategy Education (RISE) forum at the University of Dayton. Over 1,000 people from 133 universities participated in last year's RISE forum. In the competition, universities with student-managed portfolios showcase their success in the areas of growth, value, blend, alternative and fixed income styles of management. Top performers are recognized, but the emphasis of the competition is on providing feedback to all competitors on investment techniques. The FED Challenge program in the Robins School Economics department offers a similar opportunity for finance and economics students to demonstrate there knowledge of monetary and banking policy.

One highlight of the CABE is the creation of the "Meet the Street Series", a series of weekly informal meetings between students and Wall Street professionals. The initial meeting's guest was Srini Pulavarti, Chief Investment Officer of the University of Richmond Endowment Fund. The plan is to have video conference meetings with Wall Street professionals in the Finance Lab beginning this fall.

The CABE will begin operations based on current experiential programs highlighted above, all of which result in a national or regional competition/challenge for students. New programs will be added to the center as they are developed within the school. Existing and proposed programs include:

Student-Managed Investment Funds (SMIF) program
Existing activity:
• Value fund, Growth fund, Growth At a Reasonable Price (GARP) fund
• New York trip to showcase fund managers to investment banks
New activities proposed with the CABE support:
• Penn State internet-based financial trading competition
• Annual RISE conference and competition for portfolio selection

Junior/Senior Analysts Program
New activities proposed with the CABE support:
• Portfolio Management Group -- a student created investment club that invests their own
  funds in stock portfolios
• Attend RISE conference for portfolio selection
• Bloomberg training to earn Bloomberg Certification
• CFA academic challenge competition for analyst research reports (modeled after the
  New York Society of Security Analysts Investment Research Challenge)

FED Challenge program (University division)
Existing Activity:
• Seminar of Monetary Policy
• Participate in Regional FED Challenge competition
New activities proposed with the CABE support:
• Web-based journal (Robins School Economics Review)
• The Robins School survey of financial and economic conditions

Robins School Student Forecast program (proposed)
New activities proposed with the CABE support:
• Web-based forecast database for universities participating in the Robins School
  Annual Forecast of the Economy
• Annual "Forecast of the Economy" Conference in Washington, D.C.
  to highlight student forecasts

For more information on the Center for Active Business Education, contact Dr. David North

The Robins School is excited to welcome its new Executive Advisory Council (EAC) members for 2007-2008. The EAC is a proactive organization dedicated to making the Robins School a top choice school for undergraduate business education among students and employers and to strengthening the Graduate and Executive Education programs. The EAC acts as an advisory body and actively assists the Robins School of Business with outreach activities and enhancing the curriculum.

We welcome:
Peter J. Bernard, CEO, Bon Secours Richmond Health System, Inc.
Katherine E. Busser, Executive Vice President, Capital One
Theodore L. Chandler Jr., President and CEO, LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc.
Michael T. Dan, Chairman, President & CEO, The Brinks Company
Michael W. Paulette, Managing Director, Core Consulting, Inc.
John E. Reagan III, Partner in Charge, Mid-Atlantic Area Campus Recruiting, KPMG LLP
Christopher Ricciardi, CEO, Cohen & Co.
Antonio Riera, Senior Partner & Managing Director, The Boston Consulting Group
Alessandro Terenghi, President, Alfa Laval Inc.
Michel Zajur, President and CEO, Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

We would also like to thank our dedicated members who conclude
their term this year:
Robert H. Keiter, Partner, Keiter, Stephens, Hurst, Gary & Shreaves
Donald E. Kierson, President, Core Consulting, Inc.
John McCormick, Vice President, Corporate Communications/Community Relations, McCormick & Company, Inc.
Thomas E. Shockley, President, Technology Leasing Concepts, Inc.