Seven business students at Youngstown State University selected for John D. Beeghly Fellowship

Seven business students from Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration were recently selected to become the John D. Beeghly Fellows for the 2023 Spring Semester. The students selected were Ephraimia Spirtos, Isidora Sisic, Jakob Peters, David Kimpton, William John Kinglsey Everett, Rachel Durniok, and Carley Calderone.

Students selected for the John D. Beeghly Fellows program are provided with a paid fellowship to work with the APEX Accelerator at Youngstown State University, Export Assistance Network, and the Ohio Small Business Development Center. The projects they will work on include outreach for government contracting efforts, marketing capability statements, research on government contracting opportunities, marketing and social media strategies, sales forecasting, cash flow projections, business viability analysis, export readiness studies, financial modeling, and domestic and international market research. Participating students will gain valuable work experience related to their career paths and will be able to competitively position themselves in the job market once they graduate. 

Youngstown State University and the Ohio Small Business Development Center have received a best practice designation for their service delivery model that places the Beeghly Fellows into the Small Business Development Centers services. The ASBDC accreditation team that recently visited Ohio noted that the model should be used as an example to the other university-based Small Business Development Centers for integrating economic development, community, and educational services.

The funding for the John D. Beeghly Fellows Program comes from an endowment that was established at the Youngstown State University Foundation by the wife and children of John D.  Beeghly.

John David Beeghly was a lifelong resident of and businessman in Youngstown, Ohio. He was the son of Leon A. Beeghly, who was a philanthropist and industrialist. From 1967 until the end of his life, Beeghly worked as vice president and director of Standard Slag Co. and Stancorp, Inc., which was a holding company for various industrial businesses.

In an article posted on Youngstown State University’s website, the dean of the Williamson College of Business Administration, Kelly L. Wilkinson, was quoted on the fellowship, saying, “The generous gift made by the John D. Beeghly family is an important investment in our business students. The gift provides our students with career-related experiences in regional businesses, so it is a collaborative “win-win” for both the WCBA students and the Mahoning Valley.”

More information about Youngstown State University can be found at the school’s website.