STARS Transfer Night Welcomes Incoming Transfer Students
to the Smith School

On Tuesday, Sept. 7, the Smith School STARS program —Smith Talent Acquisition & Referral System— welcomed newly admitted transfer students to a networking reception designed to introduce them to each other and to corporate partners and alumni who recruit Smith school students, giving students a head start on the process of exploring careers and opportunities in business.

Approximately 30 students newly admitted as juniors to the Smith School at College Park and at Shady Grove, joined employers from KPMG, Ernst & Young, Northrup-Grumman, Target, and PWC, who will return on Sept. 17 for the Smith School’s annual Career Fair to kick off the academic year. Through informal conversations, students learned about career opportunities and picked up valuable tips from alumni employers, who enjoyed revisiting their days as Smith School students while welcoming new students to the Smith community.

The event was hosted in Van Munching Hall by the Smith School’s STARS program, the mission of which is to encourage and attract first generation and underrepresented students to the study of business and to provide a support network for academic success. The event was co-hosted by Cynthia O’Brien, Associate Director for Employer Development at the Smith School’s Office of Career Services, and by officers of the Black Business Association (BBA) and National Association of Black Accountants (NABA).

Dean Pat Cleveland welcomed attendees, and encouraged students to join the STARS program in expanding the Smith School’s outreach to prospective students. She introduced STARS ambassadors, Teonna Lonon, accounting junior and Smith Honors student, and Takor Njang, junior in accounting—both originally from Flowers High School – and Maurice Nick, junior in logistics and supply chain, from Frederick Douglass High School, all in Prince Georges County.

For more information on the Undergraduate Fellows Program, visit the website.