Business Society Food Drive- A Success!

By: Connor Mycroft

The Business society’s annual food drive was a spectacular success this year, as they managed to collect over 650 non-perishable food items to donate to UPEI’s Chaplaincy Center.

The Food Drive has become a staple event for the Business Society for over 10 years now. During the month of November, the society places their food bins outside of classrooms in McDougall where they try to collect as much as possible and donate it to a worthy cause.

This year they donated the collection to Sister Su who operates UPEI’s Chaplaincy Center.

The timing was perfect, according to Sister Su, who recognizes that many students struggle financially towards the end of the semester when schoolwork becomes especially consuming.

“The end of November is a difficult time for many students when it comes to finances. With the stress of school work, part time jobs just don’t cut it. So to be able to have food here that they can come and grab quickly, either prepare here in the kitchen or take home, it’s just a real asset to what UPEI offers people and the Business Society stepped up large this semester to help out.”

With all the donated food from the Business Society’s food drive, the Chaplaincy Center was able to use some of the money they otherwise would have spent to buy more specialized items such as fresh meats for their freezer.

Shiham Marouf, International rep, and Alex Dune, secretary, said that they would like to extend special thanks to both Susan Graham and Inga Dorsey, who they say went the extra mile to motivate their students to donate to the cause.

They also thanked Brodie Watts, a fourth year rep for the society, who helped to spearhead the food drive this year.

UPEI’s Business Society has been an organization for over 50 years now, and are well known for the campus events and community activities they put on. Although originally established to improve the out-of-classroom experience for Business students, Alex explained that the society is seeking to include students from all faculties moving forward, and highlighted some events happening in the future that will be open for everyone to partake.

In February, the society will be putting on their first internal business case competition. The competition will see students placed in groups of 4 and provided with a real business case. They will have 3 hours to solve the case and present it to a panel of judges who will crown a champion.

Alex sees this as going beyond the traditional scope of the Business Society, as it is more community oriented and aimed at full student involvement.

Shiham reciprocated by explaining that “people who usually go to case competitions are chosen, meaning that only a select few ever get to compete in them. What this does is open that up to people who wouldn’t have that opportunity.”

Shiham further explained the importance of case competitions in the business world, as you end up presenting to real businesses, which allows you to increase your exposure and provides important networking opportunities.

Furthermore, on March 31st, the society will be putting on their annual luncheon at the Confederation Center Memorial Hall. The luncheon seeks to connect UPEI business and other faculty students with local business leaders. The society believes that by providing an initial introduction and networking opportunity, potential job opportunities can arise for students once they graduate.

If you are interested in joining the society, or interested in any of their upcoming events, the society can be reached by email:
upeibusinesssociety@gmail.com

They also welcome all students to join their Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/UpeiBusinessSociety/?fref=ts