Published: April 22, 2009 08:02 am      

ECU SIFE team national finalist in contest

East Central University’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team has been selected as one of 6 national finalists out of just over 800 SIFE Teams in the United States in the Sam’s Club Environmental Sustainability Challenge. The goal of the challenge, sponsored by Sam’s Club, is to inspire sustainable practices in the lives of Sam’s Club small business customers and their businesses as well as within their customers and communities.

“This is just another example of the fact that ECU students can and do compete well against other universities in the United States,” said ECU SIFE Team advisor and Professor of Business Administration Dr. Pat Fountain. “And the great part of this is that a 1987 ECU graduate, Kevin Turner, was the CEO of Sam’s Club until he moved on to be the Chief Operating Officer of Micro in 2005.”

The ECU SIFE team worked with Sam’s Club 4761 located in Norman to improve the environmental sustainability of three small businesses. Led by Project Leader Richard Baughman, a junior business administration major from Byng, the ECU SIFE Team conducted sustainability audits at Maguires Farm Store in Slaughterville, the Allen Pharmacy in Allen and Treat’s Pool and Darts in Ada. Discussions with the business owners followed the audits and then plans were made to improve the environmentally sustainability of each business.

Using a $1,000 grant from the Sam’s Club Foundation, the group has made or is in the process of making improvements such as installing motion detecting light switches that will go off when a room is empty for a set time; providing the business with environmentally cleaning chemicals, replacing paper hand towel dispensers with air hand dryers and installing widow film to reduce energy usage and air conditioning costs in the summer.

“We hope their energy savings will make a difference in their bottom lines,” said Baughman, “and that as others hear of the changes they have made, they will be inspired to do the same.”

On April 26 Baughman, along with ECU Professor of Business Administration and SIFE advisor Dr. Pat Fountain and Valerie Neu of the Norman Sam’s Club will journey to Bentonville, Ark. The next morning Baughman will give an overview of the ECU SIFE Team’s efforts to a group of Sam’s Club Executives and then answer questions. The top three teams will be recognized at SIFE National Competition in Philadelphia on May 10.