Thiel Happenings

The Thiel College celebration of life service is at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19 at the William A. Passavant Memorial Center for Emeritus Professor of Business and Accounting David Miller ’61 H’20, who passed away October 23.

Register for campus trick or treat

The annual trick or treat for students is from 1-4 p.m. Monday, October 31.

Departments that want to participate need to complete this form.

Campus hosts busy Saturday

More than 400 people were on campus Saturday for the Fall Open House hosted by the Office of Admission and the Family Day activities hosted by Student Life.

The day was set up with activities for both groups so they could stay and watch Thiel’s night football game.

Student News

Moss shares his entrepreneurial and business insights with the Entrepreneurship Seminar

Mike Moss ’80 was the featured speaker at the October 19 Entrepreneurship Seminar. Mike is the owner of Bear’s Furniture & Mattress, Inc., headquartered in Franklin, Pa., and has five stores in western Pennsylvania, including two in Greenville.

“Mike graduated from Thiel in 1980. He grew up in Greenville and loved every minute of it. He was on the football team, basketball team and ran track in high school. He came to Thiel to get his business degree. He liked Prof. Miller the best and still uses his lessons today.” Jakob Misencik ’23

“Mike Moss graduated from Thiel in 1980 with a business degree. Mr. Moss explained how he had Professor Miller for a few of his classes during his time here at Thiel College. Mike went on to say what a great professor he was and how he had learned a lot from him and to this day he still uses many of the things learned. Prof. Miller and Mike had a few things in common as they were both involved in the furniture business at the time.” Justina Jenkins ’23

“He started in the furniture business as an employee at his family business with his father. The business started with his grandfather who started in 1884. His job was to unload furniture trucks, unpacked the packages that they received, packed up any other packages that needed to be shipped out for delivery and he also cleaned bathrooms.” Nevaeh Arnold ’23

“By the time he got into business, he had a hard time running it because he was unprepared at that time. He overcame this by joining the national Home Furnishing Association (HFA) and started getting a lot of useful information from it. He also shared how his company could survive during the difficult time in the United States, in the 1980s.” Chaeeun Lee ’23

“Mike told us about how unprepared he was when he first joined the management team and I believe that is what drives him to be a stickler on how his company’s operate today. He said, “the fear of failure will drive you to stay busy at work” and I think that he learned that lesson the hard way as he took on the responsibilities of the management team.” Ian Yahner ’23

“Then one day he received a phone call about the chance to buy out a furniture store in Franklin. After ten years he paid off their inventory and was able to purchase the real estate, he then began to expand the company. He now owns and operates five furniture stores.” Sydney Hipps ’23

“He got in with performance groups and learned a lot from them, and even learned how to improve his company’s performance when he was evaluated by them; he said he would not be where he was today without them. He gave us a very thorough presentation on the P&L funnel to give us a real idea where the money you make running a business really all goes.” Autumn Gourley ’24

“Know your numbers! Understand the ins and outs of your business’s financial performance through the aspects of revenue, COGS, fixed costs, and variable costs; compare your numbers to your industry’s average.” Ava Kavulla ’25

“I learned that the most important thing in business is numbers. Mr. Moss showed us a funnel diagram that he uses in order to keep track of his company’s expenses and profitability. He then explained to us all of the components that go into operating a business and where you can save money and how you can save money.” Tyler Zere ’23

“After listening to his presentation, one could tell that Mr. Moss is very passionate about his business and puts a lot of his time and effort into it. He participates in something called performance groups, where they analyze every aspect of your company and pass around ideas for future plans. Although they can be harsh at times, Mike takes it as a learning curve and builds from it.” Ashley Wolford ’23

“More that I got from listening to Mr. Moss is to read, go to sleep early, wake up earlier, and more. One thing he has said that I’ve been trying to apply to my life is to write down your goals, whether this be daily, quarterly, annually, etc. This will keep your intrinsic motivation at an all-time high.” Devyn Giovengo ’23

“He explained his business using pictures and coins, which was very interesting.” Jisu Kim ’23

“Ending his speech he talked about giving back. He didn’t discuss just the community aspect, but also giving back to the industry as well. He is on boards and groups that will allow for him to help the industry in which he so passionately spoke about.” Hayley Phillips ’23

“Mike has owned Bear’s Furniture for 33 years and he has no plans to step away from it any time soon.” Ian Yahner ’23

Lessons Learned

• “Take control of your destiny.” Kaleb Achuff ’24
• “Most won’t become entrepreneurs because it’s hard.” Brycen Dorfmeister ’23
• “An entrepreneur must work hard. There are no free lunches, so put the hard time in now and reap the rewards later.” Ashley Wolford ’23
• “Invest in yourself.” Jakob Misencik ’23
• “Continue learning.” Siwon Lee ’23
• “Invest in our knowledge and constantly improve it, as everything changes really fast.” Chaeeun Lee ’23
• “Inspect what you expect. Inspect the outcome of the process.” Nevaeh Arnold ’23
• “Have goals. Write them down and look at them every day to remind yourself of where you want to be.” Ashley Wolford ’23
• “Like other speakers have said in the past, but to reiterate it, know your numbers!” Justina Jenkins ’23
• “Manage the process, not the people. Train the people to help manage the process.” Nevaeh Arnold ’23
• “Grow your business at a moderate pace so when problems come up they are easily fixed.” Hayley Phillips ’23

Dinner Dishing

• “The dinner served tonight included a potato pancake, a kimchi pancake and pumpkin rice porridge as an appetizer, bulgogi, japchae, and rice on a plate with dongchimi in a bowl as a main dish. Lastly, yakgwa which is a Korean traditional was served with ice cream with plum juice. It has been an honor and pleasure working as dinner concierge. It is indeed a privilege to represent and speak on behalf of Korean international students. At the same time, it was a huge responsibility and I hope that everyone enjoyed their meal.” Seoyeon Choo ’23
• “I appreciated learning more about traditional Korean fare. I did not realize they had varying kinds of tea for different times of the meal.” Ava Kavulla ’25
• “As many people did not know how to use chopsticks, I showed how to hold and use chopsticks to the people at the same table. I was really impressed by the people at my table. I knew using chopsticks was difficult for them. Therefore, I told them it was okay to use forks instead of chopsticks. However, everyone used chopsticks until the end.” Siwon Lee ’23
  
• “This dinner experience was unique. I enjoyed getting to learn about the cuisine from South Korea and enhancing my chopstick skills. I also liked the fact that the international students shared some history, health facts and just a little about the food and when it is traditionally eaten.” Justina Jenkins ’23
  
• “We were treated with a Korean-based meal, and it was nice to experience something new! I was also proud of our entire table for everyone using chopsticks to eat.” Autumn Gourley ’24
  
• “I am really happy that I get to keep the chopsticks as a reminder of this experience.” Jakob Misencik ’23
• “Dinner was absolutely wonderful; it was so nice to have the international students get involved and have them participate in this way.” Ashley Wolford ’23

Accounting students learn from alumni

On October 18, the Arthur McGonigal Department of Business Administration and Accounting hosted eight distinguished accounting alumni who returned to Thiel to share their experiences in the accounting profession with 25 accounting students. Topics covered included career paths in the profession, challenges and opportunities, professional certifications, networking tips, and much more. Alumni participating included:

• Emily Baker ’22, Staff Accountant - McGill, Power, Bell & Associates, LLP - Franklin, Pa.
• Jennifer Cidila, CPA ’97, Partner - Baker Tilly, US, LLP - New Castle, Pa.
• Mandy May ’22, Staff Accountant – The Hudson Companies – Hermitage, Pa.
• Morgan Reisz ’18, Financial Analyst – Crown Castle – Canonsburg, Pa.
• Rachael Rose, CPA ’17, Senior Internal Auditor – WESCO Distribution - Pittsburgh, Pa.
• Kasandra Shawgo, CPA ’17, Staff Accountant - McGill, Power, Bell & Associates, LLP - Meadville, Pa.
• Scott Simcoe, CPA ’20, Assistant Controller – Greenville Savings Bank - Greenville, Pa.
• Cory Swarmer, CPA ’14, Financial Reporting Specialist – NOVA Chemicals – Pittsburgh, Pa.

The event included a buffet dinner followed by a panel discussion including Q&A and the opportunity to network. Following are some observations by various participants.

“I spoke to Scott Simcoe, who graduated from Thiel in 2020 and played baseball, about his journey from Thiel into public accounting and his reasonings for leaving. It was a great opportunity to network with someone who had a similar college career as I am currently having to give me a boost of confidence as I graduate in the spring.” Travis Harvey ’23

“I really enjoyed being able to see the alumni in different professions and from different backgrounds enjoying what they do in their professional lives. One quote that really stuck with me was, "You can only coast downhill.” Bennett Medyn ’24

“I also thought the panelists gave good, very informative answers for the most part, and disproved a lot of myths that I had some concern with about accounting.” Andrew Brandon ’24

“I loved the opportunity to talk with alumni and have my name written down for a potential interview for an internship.” Austin Siko ’24

“Something that I learned and was meaningful was that networking yourself and going to events where you can make connections is important. Also, find a firm that fits you the best, one that makes your job enjoyable.” Jacob Castona ’25

“Last night’s alumni dinner was very eye-opening and was an important experience to have. These young professionals have truly made it and it is a very relieving thought knowing that.” Allyson Kimble ’23

“It was a lot of fun. I always enjoy meeting new people and learning about their different career paths. The panelists provided a lot of great information for people starting out, which was extremely helpful. Takeaway quote: ‘Be in the office even if you have the option to be online.’” Evan Gerber ’23

“It was great to reconnect with some familiar alumni faces and meet other alumni and current students. It always feels like coming home when I come back to visit Thiel and it was a pleasure being able to share my perspective and experiences with the group.” Morgan Reisz ’18

“It was wonderful to see all of the accounting staff and students this evening and I appreciate you inviting me to be a part of this event. You had a wonderful group of students at the dinner. I know there has been a decline in accounting students and I think it is great the way you organized this evening to show students who may not yet be majoring in accounting how interesting and successful this major can be.” Jennifer Cidila, CPA ’97

“Our alums are doing amazing work in the accounting discipline. Their gift of time in coming back to Thiel to talk about their journey and talking with students about what the world of work in the accounting field looks like after graduation. They also shared the importance of internships and networking, and helping dispel myths about the profession, and did an amazing job of highlighting that the breadth and depth of the accounting degree and the variety of opportunities available to graduates with this degree.” Liza Schaef

“Thank you for the invitation to last night’s dinner. It was amazing to learn and hear from the panelists about their career journeys. I can honestly say they opened my eyes to just how much is possible with an accounting degree. As mentioned from a few last night, it is not just basic accounting.” Libbi Brown