The consulting industry is changing. That's what more than 100 students, alumni, and corporate friends heard from keynote speakers and panelists at the Smith School's Fifth Annual Consulting Forum, Nov. 7, 2003. The event was organized and sponsored by students in the Smith MBA Consulting Club.

Six second-year Smith MBA students competed in and finished the 2003 Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., on October 26, 2003. Although pushed by personal strength and commitment through the 26.2-mile endurance road race, the Smith team was united and inspired by their mutual commitment to supporting the fight against Alzheimer's disease.

The close of the spring semester at Smith is always filled with anticipation and excitement. Students are studying for finals, preparing oral presentations, attending awards ceremonies, looking for jobs, and counting the days until graduation. First-year MBAs are competing in the most anticipated event of the MBA program, the case competition. Undergraduate Awards

In an event organized by four Smith MBA students, 40 students from the University of Maryland and the U.S. Naval Academy drove Land Rovers off-road as part of a program to help them become safer drivers. The event was held on April 12, 2003, and hosted by Land Rover University in Lanham, Md.

Approximately 100 students, faculty, administrators, alumni, and honored guests attended the 10th Annual William D. Bradford Awards Banquet. The Black MBA Association (BMBAA) and Hispanic MBA Association (HMBAA) hosted the banquet, held on April 11, 2003, at the Greenbelt Marriott (Greenbelt, Md). The event promotes networking among Smith students, corporate sponsors, and distinguished alumni. This year's theme centered on the impact of diversity on corporate leadership.

Credit risk management is one of the most critical issues facing energy companies today, and a team of Smith School MBA consultants has given Constellation Power Source a leg up in managing this area. For their outstanding work in developing a credit-risk model for Constellation, the team was named best MBA consulting project for 2000-03 at a recent awards ceremony.

Reaching across the academic community, Smith′s Graduate Women in Business club (GWIB) gathered more than 50 Smith alumni, current and prospective students, faculty, and administrators to discuss ways women can achieve influence in the workplace. In honor of Women′s History Month, the event was held on March 6 and included a networking session followed by a panel discussion about strategies on how women earn respect and gain power in the workplace.

Karen Goetze, MBA candidate 2004 and incoming MBA Association (MBAA) president, traveled to France earlier this month to compete in the 2003 French National Championships for indoor track and field. Goetze took home the bronze medal for her specialty, the 1500 meters. The competition lasted three days with the final on March 1, 2003.

Smith School undergraduate and MBA students recently joined Treasury Secretary John Snow and Commerce Secretary Don Evans for a nationally-televised town hall meeting on the White House economic stimulus plan. The students, along with Smith School Professor of International Business Peter Morici and students from two other universities, participated in the economic discussion on CNBCs Capital Report program, which aired Tuesday, February 25, 2003.

Last week, as the L'Oreal e-Strat challenge entered a crucial stage, two Smith teams were sitting proudly in first and second place in the North American standings. The competition is far from over, but the leading 176 teams globally will be invited to submit a business plan in addition to their final round of decisions. Ten lucky teams will meet in Paris, April 22, for the finals.