Duke Daytime MBA Student Blog
Messages of Gratitude
During the holiday season, in the spirit of giving thanks and demonstrating the ever-present commitment to Team Fuqua, students and faculty took a moment to give gratitude and appreciation for the things — big and small — in their lives and at school for which they are truly thankful.
— Carrie Bloch, Second-Year & Communications Executive Officer, MBA Association
We are thankful for …
“Unbelievably amazing friends from all walks of life. I’m grateful that they share with me everything from their foods to their homes across the world.” – Darlene Ritter, Second Year
“Amazing club cabinets — SY and FY — who come up with fantastic ideas and see them through to develop fun and engaging activities for all of us!” – Karen Vancina, Second Year
“For class sections that applaud after their classmates give announcements at the beginning of class.” – Chris Giacolone, Second Year
“Bruno Andreoli for making me smile no matter what mood I’m in. Doctors recommend: One daily dose of Bruno.” – J.C. Conover, Second Year
“Selfless sharing from Second Year about their experiences and advice, which definitely helps a lot in our learning, recruiting and development.” – Meiqing Fan, First Year
“The renewed child-rearing pleasure and joy from our baby daughter Rukmini, ten years after our son. We are genetically programmed to be sleep deprived and blissfully happy during this time. (Note to students in Health Care Operations — My occasional mental glitches in class have nothing to do with my baby. That is just the way I roll …)” – Pranab Majumder, Faculty
“The diversity of experience and opinion of my classmates who never cease to amaze me.”– Nicole Thompson, Second Year
”My family, friends, and health. I feel extremely lucky to be at Fuqua and have the opportunity to interact with caring, intelligent people every day.” – Lee Kornfeld, First Year
“I realized that maybe the most important thing that I learned in Fuqua and that I will be always thankful for is how to create a perfect working environment. Fuqua is a safe place, an open and respectful environment, a diverse community, a collaborative and courageous community, a place where everyone is motivated and wants success of the entire community – a perfect environment to progress.” – Jose Gonzalez, Second Year
“Family, friends, freedom and the excellent opportunity to continue to grow as a leader at Fuqua.” – Mike Rybacki, First Year
“Two cute daughters who greet me with giggles and squeals when I come home every day.” – Nate Wright, Second Year
“The supportive and encouraging nature of Team Fuqua. Each and every day I am amazed from the friendly greetings in the hall to the level of discussion in the classroom. Every single day I am learning how to think in a new manner and my eyes are opened up to new societal and business challenges. Thank you Team Fuqua (FY, SY, faculty, and support staff) for making the Fuqua experience some of the best months of my life.” – Chris Mack, First Year
“I’m thankful for the opportunities I’ve had at Fuqua that I wouldn’t have had otherwise: co-leading a GATE, being a FuquaPride ally ambassador, learning about the death spiral, Fuqua Fridays, and working with classmates and professors who inspire and challenge me, to name a few.” – Deborah Costa, Second Year
“The love of my family and friends, the incredibly supportive Fuqua community, and the fact that I live in a country that allows me to pursue my every dream.” – Selina Jain, Second Year
“The great support, in all means, of the school.” – Jose Higuchi, First Year
“Health, my wonderful Fuqua family, the Suns Out Guns Out volleyball team, and anything made with pumpkin.” – Scarlett Harrod, Second Year
“10:30AM classes, 1:30PM classes, and not having to use an alarm clock this year.” – Lindsay Posner, Second Year
“The leadership and commitment of staff, faculty and students. From basketball to COLE, the MBAA to the BMO, we’ve got a remarkable body of enthusiastic individuals to make this experience transformational and unforgettable.” – Kirsten Hagfors, Second Year
“All of the hugs I give/get.” – Paul Vitelli, Second Year
“Team Fuqua. Through Team Fuqua I have started to interview for my dream internship which is thanks to all of the connections, informationals and encouragement of my classmates and friends.” – Beth Sanchez, First Year
“How much laughter there is in my life this year and for the amazing people I’m spending these two years with.” – Abigail Lundy, Second Year
“1 – A student body without rivals; 2 – A strong supply of intelligence, dedication and future leaders of consequence; 3 – No substitutes for Team Fuqua!; 4 – Savvy student “buyers” who recognized the value of a Duke MBA; 5 – Consuming strategy cases with intensity!” – John Joseph, Faculty
“All of the students who took on leadership roles at Fuqua. You make Fuqua the special place that it is and we appreciate your hard work and commitment!” – Colin Joyner, Second Year
“Easy access to unlimited student loans for “study” abroad trips around the world.” – Julia Drake, Second Year
“Excellent friends and classmates who are super talented and just as caring. Also, for the incredible opportunities that Fuqua has provided for me to learn and grow over the past year and a half.” – Matt Aviles, Second Year
“My FY Week-in-Cities cabinet, Michelle Wei, Shyam Patel, and Linda Shi, for doing a terrific job organizing and executing the trips! You made life easy for me and Fuqua proud. Thank you!” – Molly White, Second Year
“Chuck and Scott from the BMO and Michael and his team from Bon Appetit who all help us every week with Fuqua Friday.” – Benjamin van der Horst, Second Year
“How supportive Fuqua is of our LGBT classmates. To genuinely know ‘who you love’ empowers your classmates to be uninhibitedly phenomenal leaders. Thank you for unlocking the power to love! It means more than you will know.” – Monica VanBuskirk, Second Year
“The opportunity that life has given me of spending two years of my life at Fuqua with the most amazing people I have ever met!” – Maria Rodriquez-Retamoso, Second Year
“My amazing friends and classmates, my entire Fuqua experience so far, and of course, the freedom of being a SY.” – Christie Lange, Second Year
“Ginger Chicken! And getting to know a bunch of great FYs. ” – Ryan Condon, Second Year
“The amazing friends that I have found here. It’s home. And not being a first year anymore.” – Nancy Dexter-Milling, Second Year
“Friendships that are stronger than I would have thought possible in just 18 months.” – Elana Boehm, Second Year
“Delegated decision rights, performance measurement, and incentives, and that there is one thing that comes to mind for students who are reading this and who have taken Fuqua’s management accounting course: a three-legged stool.” – Shane Dikolli, Faculty
“My roommates, Aliya and Oi Yen. We met during the Weekend for Women two years ago, and they’ve been an amazing source of strength and friendship ever since.” – Mailande Moran, Second Year
“A community that is never satisfied with the status quo and is always looking for opportunities to improve.” – Carla Hickman, Second Year
“My wonderful friends, s/o, and family, all the amazing opportunities I’ve had in my life, and the fact that we have a 5-day vacation from school!” – Anjali Menon, Second Year
“I am thankful for each and every member of the Fuqua community. For those who have offered support, advice, and guidance when I needed it most. For those who contribute to and build our learning environment, who share their perspective, expertise, and insight. For those who go above and beyond to help their peers because they believe in our team, they truly want everyone at Fuqua to succeed. I am thankful for the opportunity and privilege to be here. I feel lucky and blessed that I get this time to learn, explore, and grow. The Fuqua education is a true gift and I recognize that throughout the world, most others will never enjoy anything like it.” – Samantha Brody, First Year
“The opportunity to be part of Duke BOLD and all the team-building activities for the upcoming adventure to Mt. Chachani!” – Bernardo Urdaneta, Second Year
“Classmates that continue to surprise, impress, and inspire me.” – Scott Kleiman, Second Year
“Classmates that welcome you into their family home so you can experience Thanksgiving for the first time!” – Simon Moore-Crouch, First Year
“Section 2 – Class of 2013 … Team Fuqua … The Chicago Bears … FuquaVision being so awesome” – Alex Kerr, Second Year
“I am thankful for all of the good related to Team Fuqua. Huge shout out to all of the staff, faculty, and students who contribute to making Fuqua the place that it is. I am also thankful that none of the students forced me to ride the bull or get into the cage last Saturday night at Shooters!” – Russ Morgan, Associate Dean for the Daytime MBA Program