Congratulations Smith School Graduates! Allan Edelson 81 Delivers Keynote Address

An enthusiastic crowd gathered in Comcast Center on Dec. 20, 2007, to cheer on a brand-new crop of proud Smith School alumni. Allan Edelson 81, director of Deutsche Bank Berkshire Mortgage, Inc., joined in the congratulations and gave his fellow alumni advice on selecting a career and specific steps they could take to be successful in their first job.

In particular, he urged graduates to be successful in their positions before they tried to reinvent their jobs. Most companies have processes that to the new employee seem redundant, unnecessary, and highly inefficient. While in some cases, it may actually be true, you should not revise the process until you have mastered the process, advised Edelson. Few employers like to listen to someone new, who has never closed business with the company, tell them how their systems are wrong. However, a young bright employee who learns the process fast and succeeds is another story. If that employee has suggestions, because of his or her success, people in the company are now ready to listen.

Undergraduate speaker Max Bergen with Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies Pat Cleveland.

Edelson has enjoyed a remarkable career, becoming one of the top volume loan originators in the country and now running the Chicago office of Deutsche Bank Berkshire Mortgage, Inc. He has originated more than 435 multifamily loans resulting in about $6.3 billion in loan value in 34 statesan astonishing achievement. He is a member of the schools Board of Visitors and recently endowed a scholarship to honor his father, Charles Edelson, a longtime member of the Smith Schools accounting faculty.[Transcript of Edelson's Speech]

Undergraduate speaker Max Bergen 07 noted that he and his classmates gained experience, proficiency and prestige through their Smith School experience, and urged his fellow alumni to regard their Smith School degree with pride.
[Transcript of Bergen's Speech]

MBA student speaker Amanda Buchanan with Assistant Dean for Career Management, Recruitment & Business Development Christine La Cola, MBA '99.

MBA speaker Amanda Buchanan 07 reflected on her experiences with the part-time MBA program at the Baltimore campus. She talked about the global learning opportunities she pursued in China and India as well as the many bonding experiences with her part-time MBA classmates, including the many experiences sponsored by the Part-Time MBA Association, from social events of all types to numerous charitable fundraising events.[Transcript of Buchanan's Speech]

During the commencement ceremony degrees were awarded to 170 undergraduates and 146 MBA and executive students, and eight doctoral candidates, including the first group of students in the school's executive MS in business with a concentration in accounting program. Twelve students traveled to Smith to attend the commencement ceremony from Tunis, Tunisia, graduating with a concentration in information science and technology; and one student from the school's Executive MBA program in China. PhDs were awarded to Tuck-Siong Chung, Sherae Daniel, Katherine DeCelles, Scott Nestler, Michael Pfarrer, Chih-Yang Tseng, Jing-Wen Yang, and Airu Yen. Melissa Ryan 07 sang the national anthem.