Drury SIFE takes national stage

It's been a whirlwind summer for members of Drury University's Students in Free Enterprise. In a matter of two months, members of the 32-student team won the USA SIFE competition, presented their program on Capitol Hill, and appeared on CNN.

The whirlwind next carries the team to Germany in October, when the team will represent the United States against 27 countries in SIFE World Cup 2003.

Before the World Cup games begin, Drury's SIFE team will be featured on the cover of 2 million Kellogg's cereal boxes that will hit shelves in September. Wal-Mart stores across the nation will be stocked with Frosted Flakes and Corn Pops boxes featuring this year's winner, Drury University.

The national competition was based on work performed during the 2002-03 school year. Drury SIFE completed 40 projects during the year, including the Young Entrepreneurs Association curriculum. The YEA! curriculum provides classroom materials to help elementary school teachers educate students about free enterprise.

Drury faculty members are reveling in the national attention.

"It's a chance for us to get the message out there of the things that we are doing," said Robert Wyatt, director of the Breech School of Business.

Wyatt said it is especially beneficial for the Breech School, where results already are being seen in local recruiting. "We're getting calls now from kids who are juniors in high school," he said.

Wyatt and Drury Associate Dean Charles Taylor are advisors to the SIFE team.

CNN Market Call

Aiding the recruiting effort was SIFE student Kristen Wannenmacher's interview on CNN financial network's Market Call, June 25. Wannenmacher represented the national champion Drury team and talked about the work of SIFE in an interview with host Rhonda Schaffler.

"Free enterprise is a sound system and it works," Wannenmacher told Schaffler. "If we can teach that in the Middle East or other countries, just think how much that can really change the world."

Wannenmacher talked specifically of Drury's project FARM Fostering Agricultural Renewal & Management which she worked on personally. The concept is tailored to the numerous small farmers in southwest Missouri, she said.

"What we tried to do is combine their strong agricultural skills with their sound business practices so that they can form that into a prosperous business," Wannenmacher said on the show, which has an estimated 45 million viewers.

A week later, Wannenmacher was still buzzing from the attention on her and the university.

"We got so much publicity from it," she said. "It was such a surreal experience for me.

I think that was my 15 minutes of fame right there."

The university should enjoy the exposure, as well, she said.

"Drury is fairly well known in the southwest Missouri area, but sometimes I think it lacks that national recognition," she said. "I hope that this is going to get us one step further to that."

Wannenmacher graduated in May and begins working for accounting firm KPMG this fall.

Capitol Hill

U.S. Congressman Roy Blunt invited the Drury SIFE team to Capitol Hill June 23 to present its winning program. Wyatt said the presentation was a short version of the competition program.

"They did a tremendous job talking about what they were presenting to work with students in encouraging the appreciation for enterprise as part of the elementary education system," Blunt said. "Hopefully that was a good environment for some folks from Washington to have a further sense of what SIFE is doing not just in the United States, but all over the world."

About 50 government officials were in attendance.

World Cup

Drury's SIFE team leaves Oct. 8 for Mainz, Germany, for the Oct. 12-14 international competition.

The trip is expected to cost about $68,000, including covering airfare and housing for 50 Drury SIFE members and faculty such as Wyatt and Taylor.

Drury's Office of Development and Alumni Relations is accepting contributions and hopes to raise $50,000, said Deirdre Hirner, vice president of development. Students are responsible for the balance of the costs.

The fund-raising strategy is in the planning stage, though the office's alumni pool may provide a good base, Hirner said.

Pattern of success

Drury won the inaugural 2001 World Cup in London and has continued to build on that success.

Taylor said there are several reason's for the team's success.

"We have strong support from across campus, both among faculty and administration," Taylor said.

He also cited a variety of majors among the group members. "I think it's that diversity of perspective that we bring. I think that's helped us come up with perhaps creative and new ways of looking at ideas."