Eller College alumnus Robert F. Ingold, Jr. and his wife, Norma, have sponsored the College's twice-yearly Eller College Associates Interviewing event since its inception in early 2000. Rob Ingold, Jr., President and Owner of Sun River Distributing Company has directed their annual $5,000 Business Partners contribution in support of this important event. Not only do the Ingolds give their financial support, twice a year Rob drives from Yuma to Tucson to assist in interviewing prospective Eller College candidates. These interviews take place once each fall and spring semester in conjunction with a Saturday Eller College Associates meeting. Each Associate has the opportunity to interview a number of sophomore students seeking admission into the professional phase of the undergraduate program. The Eller College was the first undergraduate business program in the country to require such a personal interview for admission to the upper division (professional phase). The interviews are an important part of the admission process, and are designed to gauge a person's interpersonal skills and motivation. Like all donors, the Ingolds could have designated their Eller College support to one of many areas, however they chose our interviewing events because of their commitment to student focused activities.

Each year Eller College Business Partners provide discretionary support that is critical to our efforts to enhance the quality of the educational experience and the career enrichment opportunities we provide our students. Among other things, we rely on the assistance of our Business Partners to:

• underwrite networking events–such as the one during Homecoming in November – that help current students interact with alumni and friends of the College and thereby make connections instrumental to the students' efforts to land internships and full-time jobs;
• bring business leaders to campus to speak to our students;
• provide career services such as advising, mock interviews, and showcases of individual firms;
• send student teams to regional and national competitions to represent our University;
• support field projects and internship programs;
• organize tours of firms run by alumni and friends of the College;
• retain promising faculty that excel in their instructional ability as well as their scholarship;
• stay abreast of the latest instructional technologies by making investments in needed software and classroom technical upgrades; and
• organize business plans and case competitions for our students on campus.

Your assistance allows us to add the margin of excellence that is needed more than ever in the wake of a slowing economy. The investment you and your firm make in our Business Partners Program is a sound one. Annual contributions help the Eller College of Business and Public Administration improve the quality of management education and enhance our ability to better serve the greater Arizona community.

The strongest evidence supporting the effectiveness of the Eller College Business Partners program is the continuing participation of individuals like yourself and organizations such as Norma and Rob Ingold's Sun River Distributing Co. To date we have nearly 90 members currently enrolled at one of the following support levels:

Partners
$2,500 to $4,999 annually

Sustaining Partners
$5,000 to $9,999 annually

Leadership Partners
$10,000 to $19,999 annually

Principal Partners
$20,000 and above annually

If you are interested in learning more about the Eller College Business Partners Program, please contact John-Paul Roczniak, Associate Director of Advancement, at 520-626-8666 or Roczniak@eller.arizona.edu