This piece was contributed by Sarah Fetters, Director of Communications, UNCW Division of University Advancement. 

Where can one sit at the intersection of past, present and future? I found this spot March 28-30 inside UNC Wilmington's Cameron School of Business (CSB). For three days, CSB welcomed hundreds of professionals to campus for lectures, networking events and presentations during its 40th annual Business Week. 
 
With two keynote addresses, a Truist Global Capitalism Lecture Series event and 100s of breakout sessions inside Cameron Hall, networking, conversations and success abounded.
 
Kicking off this spring’s activities was the March 28 lecture series in the Elwood and Mary Walker Lecture Hall, featuring Words & Numbers podcast co-hosts Dr. Antony Davies and Dr. James R. Harrigan.
 
The following morning CSB Business Week moved into high gear as the first of 110 breakout sessions was held. Each session allowed current CSB students to listen to, learn from and ask questions to alumni, faculty and friends of UNCW within the business world.
 
One of Tuesday morning’s sessions, Women in Finance, featured Lahna Harper ’14, Danielle Doyle ’19, Victoria Waldman ’18 and Madison Delev ’17. 
 
“There are so many really cool opportunities UNCW offers you,” Delev ’17 said. 
 
One such opportunity is the Prague Consulting Project. 
 
“I did the Prague Project and I absolutely recommend it,” Waldman ’18 said of the three-credit course that has business students engage in a consulting project for a client in the Czech Republic. “It was a great experience and gave us real-world business experience before graduation. It is something people find incredibly impressive.”
 
Late Tuesday afternoon, CSB students listened to keynote speaker Chakema Clinton-Quintana, the Vice President of Inclusive Small Business at Live Oak Bank. 
 
Adding to the Live Oak Bank presence Tuesday was a breakout session featuring four alums working there in Whitty Stephens ’15, T.J. Merlo ’15, Corbin Penland ’17 and Jordan Swann ’15, who covered the bank’s loan process.
 
“Wilmington is becoming a sneaky hub for technology and banking. It's fun to be a part of that evolvement of Wilmington,” Merlo ’15 said.
 
Another of the Tuesday afternoon breakout sessions featured Justin Booth '12 presenting on his experiences as the Senior Vice President with Avison Young’s Raleigh office. No stranger to giving back to UNCW, he also has a Booth Business Scholarship.
 
“Really, it is about honoring those who have helped me while trying to pay it forward and help someone else forge their own path,” Booth ’12 said of his scholarship and thanking those who supported him. “Cameron School of Business is a great resource for those seeking to learn and develop skills for their professional life.”
 
CSB students were back at it Wednesday with more breakout sessions. They heard from Ernst & Young Global Limited Carolinas Market Leader and Charlotte Managing Partner Malcomb Coley ’86, ’89M.
 
“What I see from UNCW students is that they come with that Eastern North Carolina grit,” Coley ’86, ’89M said. “They come in and work hard. UNCW is at the top of the top. Trust me.” 
 
CSB Business Week’s second keynote speaker was David S. Congdon '78, the Executive Chairman of Old Dominion Freight Line, which was founded by his grandparents. 
 
Congdon ’78 and Coley ’86, ’89M are also Like No Other: The Campaign for UNCW Campaign Executive Cabinet members. The current campaign aims to enhance the students, faculty, facilities and programs that are part of our one-of-a-kind university.
 
Programs like CSB Business Week are funded through the Cameron School of Business Excellence Fund. Gifts to this fund cultivate expertise in growing industries and offer our graduates the competitive edge they need to tackle global challenges.
 
MAKE A GIFT TO THE CAMERON SCHOOL OF BUSINESS EXCELLENCE FUND.