Women of Waco is a local networking group for women in business in the Waco area, including business owners, women who are job hunting and those who are simply looking for a community, Dr. Christy Flick said.

Most student-led organizations are lucky to sign up a few new members and get funding for an occasional meal. But one group, led by a network of college students across the country—including a Baylor freshman—has already gotten hundreds of students to sign up and received commitments for over $1 million in charitable donations. And they don’t launch until next month.

With endless blocks of skyscrapers, millions of fast-shuffling feet and only a tiny presence of Baylor alumni, it’s easy for the Bears of New York’s finance scene to feel as out of place as the 1600-mile distance from Waco would suggest. But there’s a world out there where Baylor’s footprint in the Big Apple is just as sizable as the dominant ones in Dallas and Houston.

As diverse as Baylor’s offerings are, though, the academic makeup of the student body is not exactly the intellectual rainbow that the triple-digit number suggests. The palette is probably better described as dozens of thin strips with slightly different shades, sprinkled among a few very wide bands of dominant colors.

During International Business Week, experts discussed the evolving challenges of global trade and encouraged Baylor students to build relationships, take risks, and use Baylor’s trade compliance courses to gain a competitive edge.

People often dismiss theater with the excuse, “This major is easy.” That’s such an oversimplified and unfair way out. The truth is, no major is easy. Every major faces its own challenges, pressures and unique demands.

The challenge came from the desk of Business School Dean Dr. David Szymanski, who, in his first year at Baylor, has pushed for the adoption of AI across all business disciplines. Working alongside the entrepreneurship department, Szymanski wanted to lead something that combines a top-10 program with the popular technology.

According to their website, Esther’s Closet has helped over 800 women in their employment journeys, some of whom have gone on to start their own successful businesses.

The latest victim of private equity appears to be JOANN Fabric and Crafts, a nationwide chain of craft stores. For the second time in less than a year, JOANN filed for bankruptcy in January.

Argyle sophomore Avery Mortman and her mother, Michelle Mortman, brought a fresh sense of style to downtown Waco when they opened their boutique Golden Green in November, offering a carefully curated selection of trendy and timeless pieces.

Inside, the lights are off, the shelves are empty and the chairs are gone. Huaco Lounge is officially closed for good. The restaurant on Mary Ave. saw a resurgence in business due to completed road construction at the end of summer in 2024, but it hasn’t been able to stay at that rate, said owner Sebastian Reyes.

The Baylor Angel Network hosted speakers at the Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation on Thursday to discuss the potential of investing in humanoid robotic technology and cryptocurrencies.

Wright pointed to hands-on learning as essential to not only a practical way to truly understand one’s work, but also as a way to gain practical experience in the field of management consulting. He said that students ought to be able to include the class –– during which they split into groups to partner with local businesses –– on resumes just like any consulting internship.

The Baylor Business Selling Outside competition is one of five in-school competitions ProSales majors take part in each year. This year, 136 ProSales majors role-played a scenario in which they represented a technology firm attempting to provide a software product to a beleaguered HR department.

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“So we’re helping the entrepreneur ecosystem,” Martin said. “In addition to helping starters raise funding, we also help angel groups find members … we also help VC funds find limited partners, primarily family offices.”

“The way technology and tech tools have advanced, it’s perhaps never been as easy to leverage data as it is today for businesses of any size,” Reid said.

“I hope that all these families will be prepared, that they will be less stressed and that they know that they have support during unexpected circumstances,” Ritchie said.

“Meeting presidents, attending high-profile events — it was exhilarating. But more importantly, understanding how politics influenced the business world and vice versa was an education no classroom could provide,” Limbers said.

Most students focus on grades, their jobs, relationships and more during their years at college. On top of all that, Rockwall senior Laney Sledge runs her very own boutique.

Baylor introduces the BASE Business Administration Summer Experience, for undergraduate business minors located in Waco launching during the summer of 2025.

As for how the relationship between an SI Leader and their students differs from that of a professor-student relationship, Mishra said that her role is to be more like the students’ friend and to keep the environment as lighthearted and fun as possible.

“We want the organizations in the school to know that we’re a resource for them and that they can come talk to us,” Prescott said. “HSO is here to serve the business school. We’re not just like any other organization you can join. We have a purpose of serving the people that are around us.”

We live in a culture that glorifies business. A culture that says a packed schedule makes you successful. However, taking time to slow down and do nothing is not only OK — it’s necessary. Rest isn’t some guilty pleasure to be earned after pulling an all-nighter or completing a marathon study session. It’s a basic need. When was the last time you permitted yourself to just… be? No deadlines, no to-do lists, just a moment of calm where you could catch your breath.

“Don’t even worry about failing,” he said. “Don’t even worry about the logistics, right? You start first. You bully yourself into starting, and then you figure everything else out as it comes.”

“Obviously, try to first pursue what you like because you want to enjoy what you’re doing,” Thakkar said. “But at the end of the day, don’t stress too much about your major because you can easily change within the business school. You’re taking the same core classes for the most part, so just go with your gut because there’s a lot of flexibility.”

“Part of the function of the Accounting Society is just bringing in professionals whose background is in accounting and exploring how their careers went so you have a better picture of what your future might be,” Carpenter said.

Amy Murphy, former manager of two Shipley Do-Nuts in Waco, said she went through the FastTrac Program 20 years ago and continues to apply what she learned about business during those 10 weeks in her current profession of social work.

People may think finance is all about making money, but according to Dr. Shane Underwood, Baylor students are among those who are learning to use their skills to help the world.

Brown said the goal of the Accounting Society is to expose students to the field of accounting in a low-stress environment. What will be notable about the club is that anyone can join, even if they have not declared an accounting major.