$4.5 Million Kauffman Foundation Grant to
Establish Entrepreneurial Academy
The Kauffman Foundation has funded a proposal from the College to establish an academy to build entrepreneurial capacity and culture at the University of Illinois and extend those initiatives to other doctoral-granting institutions. Read more from the College and the Kauffman announcement...

Illinois Pension Obligations Analyzed
Finance Professor Stephen D'Arcy performed an in-depth analysis of the pension obligations of the State of Illinois. Says D'Arcy and co-author Kevin Ahlgrim of Illinois State University: "Illinois pension programs still face daunting problems from years of inaction." Read more...

Cuts in U of I State Support Reviewed
Economics Professors Jan Brueckner and Fred Giertz analyzed state support for the U of I versus its Big Ten counterparts. The numbers are revealing. Read more... and view the table comparing Big-Ten institutions.

Research on Local Stock Ownership Noted
Local knowledge pays. Managers of mutual funds know that and research by Scott Weisbenner and Zoran Ivkovich, faculty members in the Department of Finance, supports the contention. Read more...

Researcher Calls Annuities "A Personal Pension Plan"
Finance faculty member Jeff Brown is featured in a video news release on retirement funding. The release has been shown on such varied channels as CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ESPN, and MTV. Hear and see more... (Click on Retirement Crisis in your preferred format.)

Research on Stock Splits Cited and the Contrarian View
According to David Ikenberry's research, stock splits have historically sent a signal that a company was bullish on its own stock. But a contrarian's view has also surfaced. Read more...

"Re-gifting" or "Lateral-cycling"
Any stigmas associated with re-gifting -- the practice of giving away a present you received (and may have used) -- are changing. Consumer behavior researcher Cele Otnes is quoted in the article. Read more...

Illinois CIBER Hosts Global Security Conference
Keeping international operations secure was the focus of a one-day conference sponsored by almost twenty CIBER centers around the country. Illinois CIBER staff coordinated the session, which was followed by a research workshop. Read more...

OSBI Consulting Update
The latest news from OSBI Consulting is available online. Current projects are listed and a story on a team's work with an interesting non-profit that makes and sells caramels is included. Read more...

Discussion Forum Highlights Development of Management Team
How to build a management team best suited to the needs of an emerging business was the focus of a Center for Entrepreneurial Development-sponsored forum in November. Read more...

FDA Proposes Expanding Nutrition Labels: Will It Work?
The Food and Drug Administration has proposed expanding nutrition labels on food but the idea might not work. Consumer research by Business Administration Professor Brian Wansink shows that knowing the calorie count of a food item did not make people eat less. Read more...

College of Busines Media Experts Guide
Looking for an expert source? The newly released Media Experts Guide, designed for journalists, is a quick and easy way to find Business faculty with a particular research interest. Check out the Guide.

January 8, February 12, and March 11:
Executive MBA Info Sessions in Chicago
Attend an Executive MBA Informational Session to learn more about our prestigious MBA degree for accomplished executives from the faculty and students currently in the program. Sessions are on the 4th Floor at 200 S. Wacker in Chicago from 4:00-6:00 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month. Visit TheExecutiveMBA.com for more details.

Feb 3 & 4: Winter 2004 Business Career Fair on Campus
The Winter 2004 Business Career Fair will be held on February 3rd and 4th in the Illini Union. Online registration for companies started November 17th via the BCS website. Student card-access entry to the fair will faciltate accurate attendance data and will restrict entry to current U of I students.

March 12: Annual Spring Luncheon in Chicago
Mark your calendars now for the 44th Annual Spring Luncheon! Join us for our annual alumni luncheon in Chicago hosted by the College of Business Alumni Association. The speaker will be Jeff Margolis. Watch www.business.uiuc.edu/alumni for more details.

For more information about the college or university, refer to these online resource pages:

• College of Business home page
     http://www.business.uiuc.edu/
• News and home page archive
     http://www.business.uiuc.edu/publications/news.html
• Make a gift to the College of Business
     http://www.business.uiuc.edu/development/contribute.html
• Illinois MBA Program
     http://www.mba.uiuc.edu
• Executive MBA Program
     http://www.business.uiuc.edu/emba/
• Help the University of Illinois with the Big Ten GOLD Challenge!
     http://www.bigtenchallenge.org/
• Business Alumni and External Affairs and
  College of Business Alumni Association (CBAA)
     http://www.business.uiuc.edu/alumni
• University of Illinois home page
     http://www.uiuc.edu/
• University of Illinois Alumni Association
     http://www.uiaa.org/
• University of Illinois News Bureau
     http://www.news.uiuc.edu/