They reaffirmed their affection for Florida State University. "If I woke up every day like it was my first day at FSU," Peter Collins said, "I'd be OK with that." They accentuated their appreciation for newfound enshrinement and fame. "It's probably the biggest honor of my life," Ted Ostrander said. And they proclaimed their passion for helping people. "Isn't that what it's all about?" John Rivers asked. Collins, Ostrander and Rivers emphasized those points and more on Nov. 4 when the College of Business inducted them into its Alumni Hall of Fame.

With the candor of a commander, Ash Williams likens the Florida organization that he navigated for parts of four decades to a nuclear submarine.

Danny Persaud calls it investing in tomorrow. "Especially when it comes to education, if there's some way I can benefit the next generation and I can do it, I'll do it," he says. Florida State University concurs -- because he did it.

Luke Hopkins says he doesn't want Seneff Scholars to see the program as another graduation medallion or as another line item on a resume. "I would want them to say it was a valued experience," he says

It includes faculty and staff members who help College of Business students get their career goals in order. It features alumni and business executives who offer participation in networking events and other opportunities. It even boasts liaisons who point students to comprehensive assistance at the FSU Career Center. The Center for Professional Success offers those direct services and more -- now housing under one roof programs and amenities that the College of Business had provided separately.

Inspired by the desire to reciprocate all he has received from the Florida State University College of Business, alumnus Jay Steele (BS Accounting ’90; JD Emory University ’94) recently gifted $100,000 to his alma mater.  The donation will go toward naming a room in Legacy Hall, the college’s new home.

Now, it’s our turn. If we all pull together and raise the remainder of the $44 million needed in private funding, we can begin building Legacy Hall in fall 2022.

Marketing senior Alani Verges says her early career plans are to “touch ground” in various industries relating to marketing and, after expanding her skill set, dive into national project management. She sees her summer stint as a change management intern at FPL Next Era Energy as setting her on the way.

Business alumnus Richard Wheeler (BS Management ’78; MBA ’79) likes to say that his family is “all in” when it comes to Florida State University. He offers as evidence his wife, Bonnie, three siblings, two sons and their spouses, two nieces and two nephews – all who earned various degrees at FSU.

A towering presence in the hallways of the Florida State University College of Business for two decades, recently retired Ceasar Douglas, a former management professor and department chairman, passed away on June 30, 2021.