Smith Programs Challenge Students to Think Independently

As the fall 2025 semester begins, students at the Robert H. Smith School of Business are exposed to opportunities in and out of the classroom that teach them how to think independently and engage in rational and respectful discourse. These are the hallmarks of a civil society where individuals build win-win relationships. It is all part of the Smith School’s strategic plan.

“Our programs are designed to push students to form their own views by evaluating all sides and asking the hard questions, to themselves and each other,” said Dean Prabhudev Konana. Intellectual curiosity, and freedom of thought and speech, are not optional, Konana added. “They are essential to the Smith experience.”

Immersive Education

The Smith Business Leadership Fellows Program (SBLF), introduced in 2022, is one of Smith’s many initiatives that provide students immersive opportunities to practice these principles. During their freshman and sophomore years, fellows explore two pillars: “Focus on Me” and “Focus on We.” Using an entrepreneurial mindset, they engage in self-discovery to identify their purpose based on their abilities and aspirations, and to think carefully and critically about personal and professional choices. Their team-based experiential learning enables them to solve real-world problems through voluntary, win-win relationships, resolving conflict through constructive and respectful dialogue.

Like SBLF, the Interdisciplinary Business Honors Living-Learning Program (IBH), in partnership with the University of Maryland Honors College, offers a two-year experience for exceptional students from all majors. It helps them develop the technical business skills to tackle society’s biggest social, environmental, human rights and public health challenges.

The Snider Enterprise and Leadership Fellows (SELF) Experience, an outreach program through the Terp Young Scholars program, enables high school students to think as CEOs of My Enterprise (ME) Inc. while creating entrepreneurial pitches in teams. Now in its 10th year, SELF has drawn students from around the world, many of whom later enrolled at Maryland as undergraduates.

Events That Encourage Engagement

The Smith School’s Centers of Excellence complement these programs through co-curricular activities, bringing thought leaders, CEOs and entrepreneurs to campus in debate and discourse settings. These events reinforce the school’s commitment to intellectual curiosity and independent thinking.

The Ed Snider Center for Enterprise and Markets fosters discussion on big issues through events such as the Campus Liberty Tour Debate Series. Presented in collaboration with the Steamboat Institute since 2018, the debates encourage students to focus not on what to think, but how to think. Debate topics have included nationalism vs. globalism, featuring Nigel Farage and former Mexican President Vicente Fox, and whether environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals should influence investment decisions. The next debate, scheduled for Oct. 28, 2025, will cover the resolution: “Be it resolved, the government should ban all DEI programs.”

Other events such as the Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series and the Finance Grand Challenges Speaker Series give the Smith community the chance to engage with influential leaders from business, government and academia.

As part of the Fact-Based Discourse Initiative, launched in 2024, the Smith School will host the Heterodox Academy (HxA) Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference Sept. 26–27, 2025. The theme is “The Role of Universities in Promoting Open Inquiry.” Faculty, staff and students from Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina will gather to explore ways to strengthen intellectual diversity and open inquiry.

The Smith School’s strategic plan prioritizes reimagined learning, tackling society’s grand challenges and building communities where ideas can be tested freely. “Smith students graduate prepared to engage and lead the world as independent thinkers and engage in civil discourse, even when topics are tough,” Konana said.

The Fact-Based Discourse Initiative is one of several sponsored by the Heterodox Academy Campus Community at Maryland. The group is co-chaired by Jacqueline Manger, managing director of the Ed Snider Center for Enterprise and Markets; Rellie Derfler-Rozin, academic director of the Master’s in Management Studies and Online Master of Management Studies programs; Rajshree Agarwal, Rudolph Lamone Chair of Strategy and Entrepreneurship and director of the Ed Snider Center; and Sebastian Galiani, Mancur Olson Professor from the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences. They will plan additional programming throughout the year, including panel discussions and speaker events to promote open inquiry and viewpoint diversity.