For Spartans everywhere, emotions have been high as MSU President Samuel L. Stanley Jr., M.D., recently announced plans to safely bring students back to campus this fall. For three Broad College marketing students, the excitement was amplified by their selection as the 2020 recipients of the Geenan Legacy Endowed Scholarship.
Rising seniors Amyl Patterson, Sarah Oesterling and Madison Genord have been chosen as this year’s scholars and will each receive $1,400. They were selected based on their proven history of leadership within the MSU community and the community at large, as well as how they plan to utilize their marketing education to continue leadership efforts in the future.
Connecting marketing and entrepreneurship
Amyl Patterson (B.A. Marketing ’21)
In addition to pursuing a degree in marketing, Patterson is dual majoring in Spanish. She has been an active member and is the current president of the Multicultural Business Students organization. Additionally, she is involved in several other business student organizations, including Women in Business and Women in Entrepreneurship.
“Being a part of the Multicultural Business Programs has had an incredible impact on my college experience,” she said. “I have built many friendships, landed internships and developed a better idea of my goals for the future.”
Patterson commented that one of her biggest goals for the upcoming school year as MBS president is to continue to offer resources to minority students on campus while maintaining a safe, inclusive environment. In the future, she plans to open a digital marketing agency concentrating on helping small-business owners and other entrepreneurs grow their brands and develop marketing strategies that connect consumers with brands that fit their personal lifestyle and values.
Focusing on diversity and acceptance
Sarah Oesterling (B.A. Marketing ’21)
Like Patterson, Oesterling is dual majoring, studying both marketing and interdisciplinary studies in social science. She currently serves as executive director of the MSU Orchesis Dance Company.
“Orchesis has expanded to over 80 members, and this growth had a lot to do with simply maintaining a positive attitude and a commitment to inclusivity, which are core to our beliefs of diversity and acceptance within movement,” she said.
Her experience through Orchesis has contributed to her involvement in other organizations, such as the MSU Marketing Association and VIM Magazine, MSU’s student-run fashion and lifestyle magazine. She hopes to one day be a part of solving structural issues at the intersection of race and gender in the workplace.
Chasing a passion for sports and community
Madison Genord (B.A. Marketing ’21)
Genord’s passion lies in sports and keeping youth active. In addition to her major in marketing, she is minoring in sports business management. She has been a member of Spartans Rebuilding Michigan and the MSU Marketing Association and, since her sophomore year, has served on the executive board of Future Leaders in Sports and Entertainment; she is now the organization’s president.
“FLISE allowed me to discover my desire to work in the sports industry and showed me how to incorporate my love for community work in that space,” she said.
After graduation, she hopes to join an NBA team working in community relations and social impact.
The Geenan Legacy Endowed Scholarship was established by Richard and Sylvia Geenan to honor their grandson, Adam Geenan, who graduated from the Broad College with a degree in marketing in 2001. The scholarship is awarded once per academic year.
