DiBartolo is Featured Speaker at Fall Convocation

SALISBURY, MD---A little planning can go a long way toward personal and professional success. That’s the message Dr. Gerard DiBartolo, associate professor of marketing in the Franklin P. Perdue School of Business and men’s soccer coach, hopes to send to students attending SU’s annual Fall Honors Convocation 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 7, in Holloway Hall Auditorium.

DiBartolo is the featured speaker at the colorful ritual, featuring the traditional procession of faculty in full regalia, the pomp and circumstance of the University mace, flag, Alma Mater and University Chorale, and the celebration of student achievement as awards, scholarships and other academic honors are presented. The afternoon concludes with a reception on the Fulton Hall lawn.

In his speech, “Enhancing Your Personal and Professional Marketing Value,” DiBartolo tells students about the opportunities available at SU today that were not when he began his career with the University in 1979: national and international competitions, speaking engagements, the chance to attend conferences and present papers, internships, service learning and networking opportunities.

He also draws attention to two of SU’s unique programs: the Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence competition that rewards students for writing strong business plans and the SU Student Research Conference, which gives undergraduate students a chance to present their scholarship in an atmosphere normally reserved for graduate students.

“In 1979, undergraduate research was an afterthought,” DiBartolo said. Today, Kaplan’s The Unofficial, Unbiased Insider’s Guide to the 328 Most Interesting Colleges lists undergraduate research as one of SU’s major strengths.

DiBartolo encourages students to make the most of that strength, focusing their research in one area instead of taking a more disjointed approach: “Take advantage of projects made available in courses. Look at those projects as something that can help in graduate school. These are ways students can create a unique value within themselves.”

Outside the classroom, Salisbury offers programs to help enhance personal value.

“SU does a wonderful job of bringing in diverse speakers that provide lots of ideas on various topics” who could open students’ minds to new ways of thinking and expose them to unfamiliar cultures, DiBartolo said. Adding clubs and intramural activities to that mix, “students can fill up their days and evenings with these things if they take the effort and do some planning.”

The public is invited to attend convocation ceremonies. For more information call 410-543-6030 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.