YSU students selected Beeghly fellows

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Five students in Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration have been selected as John D. Beeghly Fellows for the 2015 fall semester.

Fadi El Chammas, Jerry Dugan, Jessica Marando, Alex McFarland and Corey Patrick were picked for the honor.

The John D. Beeghly Fellows program provides students with paid fellowships working with the Ohio Small Business Development Center and the International Trade Assistance Center at YSU.

Projects include marketing research, preparation of financial statements, export readiness studies, country research, business plan development, cash-flow analysis and sales forecast. Students gain valuable career-related work experience and are able to position themselves to be competitive in the job market upon graduation.

The program is made possible by an endowment established at the YSU Foundation by Beeghly’s wife and children. Beeghly was a lifelong resident and businessman in Youngstown and the son of area industrialist and philanthropist Leon A. Beeghly.

From 1967 until his death, Beeghly served as vice president and director of Standard Slag Co. and Stancorp Inc., a holding company for industrial businesses.

“We are extremely grateful to the John D. Beeghly Family for making this generous investment in our business students,” said Betty Jo Licata, WCBA dean. “Providing our students with career-related experience contributes to the success of our regional businesses and the professional preparation of our students,”

El Chammas, of Poland, is a senior international business management student with a marketing minor planning to graduate in fall 2016. He has worked in the food industry for more than five years, providing customer service and gaining professional selling experience. Currently, he is an intern at the Ohio Small Business Development Center and the International Trade Assistance Center, where he is gaining experience in exporting.

Dugan, of McDonald, is a senior accounting major who recently completed a tax/audit internship with Novogradac and Company in Dover, Ohio. He is an active member of Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society, where he helps mentor freshmen business majors and assists faculty members in planning events. He also volunteers with Junior Achievement to teach at local elementary schools about economics.

Marando, of Hubbard, is a senior marketing management major and accounting minor. She completed a marketing internship for Vapor Stockroom, where she focused on social media and brand development. During her time with Vapor Stockroom, she launched and promoted three new product lines as well as multiple house-specific products. She is a member of Enactus, an entrepreneurial organization on campus, where she has served as public relations chairwoman for the past two years.

McFarland, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is a senior business economics major. She recently completed a payroll associate internship at Future Systems Inc. McFarland is involved in the Economics Club and is a member of Phi Kappa Phi honor society. She is completing her second semester as a Peer Tutor in Economics in the Center for Student Progress. She plans to attend graduate school at YSU for a master’s in financial economics and continue on as an economic development adviser for the Peace Corp. in the Burkina Faso region.

Patrick, of Struthers, is a senior finance and marketing double major, entrepreneurship minor. He recently completed a Financial Advisor Internship with Edward Jones Investments. He serves as the president of YSU Enactus, a student entrepreneurial organization on campus, WCBA representative of the Student Government Association, WCBA Student Leadership Council, as well as head chairman of social media and fundraising in Sigma Tau Gamma.