By Clark Satterlee

Just a short time ago, the Drury MBA Mentorship Program was formed amid some great expectations. While the program is only a few months old, students and mentors alike are reporting positive results. The program involves the pairing of an MBA student with a local business leader. Special care was taken to ensure that students were assigned to mentors whose backgrounds complimented the students' interests.

One student who is already experiencing benefits from the Mentorship Program is Shannon Huett, a second-year MBA student. Shannon was paired with Sheila Collins, President of Springfield Granite. Through the mentorship program, Shannon has been able to bridge the gap between her classroom studies and application. According to Shannon, Shelia has shared with her "wisdom about business, especially taking theory from class and putting it into a real world application." In addition to offering sound wisdom, Sheila also invited Shannon to attend a leadership conference with her. Produced by a large law firm from Kansas City, the conference was attended by aproximatly 80 women leaders. The guest speaker gave a motivational speech about being true to oneself. Shannon described the event as "an amazing experience."

As the Drury MBA Mentorship Program continues to grow, more stories like Shannon's will become common. Nevertheless, the benefits from this program are already visible. As Shannon states, "it pays to be exposed to such an amazing woman who knows so much about people and has a lot of wisdom to share."