Winners announced in UB School of Management undergraduate DEAL Expo

BUFFALO, N.Y. – A cybersecurity competition and a think tank implemented by undergraduate students in the University at Buffalo School of Management took top honors in the third annual DEAL (Display of Efforts, Aptitudes and Leadership) Expo, an event that showcases undergraduate achievements in the school.

Juan Jimenez of Somers and Nicholas Johns of Rochester took first place and a $750 prize in the Best Applied Experience category for their project “Center for Development and Strategy (CDS),” a student-run think tank that has founded a number of initiatives to spread awareness of key issues in development, encourage student collaboration and publish new research.

In the category of Best Research, Aaron Fiebelkorn of Williamsville earned first place and a prize of $750 for his project, “Hacking a Scheme to UB NetDef’s Cybersecurity Competition,” which highlighted his plan to launch a UB-hosted cybersecurity competition for teams of college students.

Rony St. Simon of Alfred and Evan Chen of Williamsville took a $500 prize and the Open House Choice award for their project “Behind the Scenes of the Student Association.” The award is a special honor chosen by accepted students at the university’s spring open house held March 28, the same day as the DEAL Expo.

The DEAL Expo is a student-run poster contest that provides undergraduate students in the School of Management the opportunity to showcase their best research, class projects, internship experiences and creative activities.

David Murray, clinical associate professor of management science and systems in the School of Management, was selected as Undergraduate Mentor of the Year.

The top 10 projects will represent the School of Management in the university-wide Celebration of Academic Excellence on April 16 in the UB Center for the Arts. These top selections included projects on strategic planning for the Food Bank of Western New York; a student experience as “Campus Agents” for video streaming service HBO Go; SyllabusRate.com, a website where students and professors can upload, view and rate course syllabi; and research into the effects of social media and citizen journalism on social justice.

School of Management alumni, faculty and staff served as judges for the competition. Benjamin Fine ’14, product development coordinator at Entertainment Benefits Group, served as an alumni judge. Faculty and staff judges were G. Lawrence Sanders, professor of management science and systems; and Carrie Gardner, administrative director, Internships and Experiential Learning Office.

The UB School of Management is recognized for its emphasis on real-world learning, community and economic impact, and the global perspective of its faculty, students and alumni. The school also has been ranked by Bloomberg Businessweek, the Financial Times, Forbes and U.S. News & World Report for the quality of its programs and the return on investment it provides its graduates. For more information about the UB School of Management, visit mgt.buffalo.edu.