Class of 2008, Marketing and Business Management Major
Hometown: Frederick, Maryland

Although she had visited campus four times while attending Church of God summer conferences, and her father, Joseph Wills, is an alumnus, Virginia Wills had never considered attending The University of Findlay. “But my parents made me take a tour, and I liked the size of the school,” she said. “I didn’t have any idea what I wanted to do, but I knew I’d enjoy it.”

And she has done just that. A marketing and business management major withan accounting minor, Wills worked on campus in the Office of Career Services and was an active member of Marketing Club, Accounting Club, Rotaract Club and the Oiler Environmental Safety and Health Organization (OESHO). She has held numerous leadership roles within those organizations, and she was voted to be on the Homecoming court in fall 2007.

Virginia, bottom right, with fellow Rotaract members Mel Snyder, Stephanie Heydinger and Devin Games in San José, where they attended an international Rotary conference.

Wills became a member of OESHO just for fun. “It’s the most fun club I’ve ever been in. We went camping, we went on a ski trip, and I was a project leader for Fear Factor,” an event where students compete in obstacle course-style stations. She also remembers scoring a touchdown in a Powder Puff football game, organized by several organizations, including OESHO.

Her involvement in Marketing Club gave Wills a tremendous amount of experience directly related to her business major. “If it wasn’t for Marketing Club, I don’t know how I’d be able to graduate and feel comfortable going into the workplace,” she said.

The group hosted events such as a cultural dinner at Japan West, a restaurant in downtown Findlay, where each attendee gets an opportunity to try sushi; and Extreme Marketing Makeover, where students are given approximately one hour to develop a marketing plan for area small businesses and give presentations to the business owners.

Another fun Marketing Club project was the SWOT Team, named after the common business analysis tool in which marketers look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of a company. Club members worked in teams to analyze and assess area small business’ current marketing plans and offer suggestions for improvement.

Wills, who served as president of the group her senior year and as treasurer her junior year, said she is proud of all the things the group was able to accomplish, including increasing membership in the Marketing Club and completing volunteer work for the Toledo Symphony Orchestra and the Salvation Army, in addition to their other projects each semester.

S. Chris Ward, Ed.D., Marketing Club adviser, was a source of inspiration for Wills. “She is so motivated and so involved with a variety of things,” said Wills. “It helped me to see that if she can do it, I can do it, too.”

Another business professor who made a lasting impression on Wills was Robert Rustic. “I met Professor Rustic during my freshman year, and he has been one of my favorite professors since then,” she said. “He’s a good storyteller, and he had real-life stories that explained the management strategies he was talking about because he’d gone through it.”

As Wills looks forward to starting a career after graduation, she knows Findlay was a good choice. “I grew up a lot, and I figured out who I was,” she said. “All of my professors – not just those in the College of Business – always were willing to take the time to talk to me about anything.”

Wills’ parting words: “Stand up for what you believe in. Initiate change. And have fun.”