The Plymouth State University Small Business Institute was honored with the 2003 Showcase Award at the annual conference of the Small Business Institute (SBI) in Clearwater Beach, Fla., February 13.

The Showcase Award is presented each year to the college or university deemed by vote of the membership to have the most outstanding SBI program. The award acknowledges the consistent high quality of reports submitted by Plymouth State graduate students to the national Case of the Year competition, according to Plymouth State SBI Director Craig Zamzow.

“The SBI program is an important and integral component in PSU’s programs, showing the linkage from theory to real world practice for students. Craig and the MBA faculty have done an outstanding job mentoring students to achieve their goals in working with businesses in the area on various projects,” said Dennise Maslakowski, associate vice president of graduate studies and community outreach at PSU.

Plymouth State MBA students have captured at least one first- or second-place award at the national competition for the past six consecutive years. The SBI program is designed to give smaller businesses intensive management counseling from qualified graduate students, at no charge to the client. In turn, it gives students valuable training and experience within a service-learning model.

Plymouth State has been partnering with area small businesses for nearly 30 years. Founded by the late Professor John V. Miller Jr., the Plymouth program has always been known nationally for the quality of work performed by Plymouth State students.

The Small Business Association eliminated the budget line that supported SBI programs in 1995, but Plymouth State believed the value the pro bono consulting provided, and the experience the students gained, was too important to abandon. The University has continued to support SBI with a mix of institutional dollars and funds donated to the John V. Miller Jr. SBI Endowment Fund.
—EC