Olin Business School

Marking his first day as CEO of the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association (RCGA), Joe Reagan will discuss “Innovation & Entrepreneurship: Creating the Future Economy” during the annual Olin Cup awards ceremony beginning at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1, in Simon Hall’s May Auditorium on Washington University in St. Louis’ Danforth Campus.

Last year’s hit Super Bowl ad, a Volkswagen spot featuring a boy dressed as Darth Vader, was unique in that it was actually released before the game. This year, nearly all ad agencies are expected to run previews of their commercials before the Feb. 5 Super Bowl on YouTube and other sites, leading a marketing expert at Washington University in St. Louis to question the wisdom of running a television ad at all.

Talent contests are abundant these days. Whether it’s singing, dancing or cooking, it seems someone is always on the lookout for the next “super star.” WalMart Stores, Inc., have even entered the fray, announcing a reality-show like plan to find the next “it” product, a move an innovation expert at Washington University in St. Louis applauds.

As another presidential election year gets under way, defining and determining what makes a great leader is on the minds of many voters and politicians. A new and innovative course at Olin Business School, “Defining Moments: Lessons in Leadership and Character from the Top,” examines this question by allowing students to interact with top leaders in the corporate world who exemplify both integrity and excellence.

Andrew Knight, PhD, leads an i teach 2012 session on polling as a teaching tool during the i teach 2012 symposium — a biennial event at which faculty gather to talk about teaching experiences and to learn about new teaching methods and technology — at Seigle Hall Jan. 12. Approximately 150 faculty attended the event, which offered 16 classroom sessions on topics ranging from “Twitter for Teaching” to “Academic Integrity at WU: Myths and Realities.”

The McDonnell International Scholars Academy at Washington University in St. Louis welcomed 12 new talented graduate and professional students for the 2011-12 academic year. The new scholars are graduates of one of 27 premier universities from around the world partnered with WUSTL in the McDonnell International Scholars Academy.

The controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is merely an attempt to shore up a dying and inefficient business model, grafted onto an attempt to control the Internet, says an expert on the business of entertainment at Washington University in St. Louis.

Everyone has a good story to tell and Washington University’s Olin Business School has created a new blog platform for its community of students, professors, alumni, deans, and staff to share their favorite stories about life at the business school.

Faculty and graduate students from St. Louis-area universities with an interest in labor, households, health care, law and social welfare are invited to take part in a series of Monday brown-bag luncheon seminars to be held biweekly on the Danforth Campus at Washington University in St. Louis beginning Monday, Jan. 23, through Monday, April 16.The series continues Monday, Jan. 23, with a lecture by Kelly Bishop, PhD, assistant professor of economics at WUSTL, on “Hedonic Prices and Implicit Markets: Estimating Marginal Willingness to Pay for Differentiated Products without Instrumental Variables.”

The Gephardt Institute for Public Service is accepting nominations for the Civic Scholars program, which recognizes Washington University in St. Louis undergraduate students who exemplify future potential for civic leadership. Nominate a current sophomore by Friday, Feb. 3, by filling out a brief form on https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CivicScholarsNominationForm.