Jones College is back in business with Courtyard Bash [+VIDEO]

MTSU’s Jennings A. Jones College of Business again brought out throngs of students with barbecue, music, free T-shirts and lunchtime fellowship at the second annual Back to Business Courtyard Bash held Thursday, Sept. 1, in the courtyard area of the Business and Aerospace Building.

With Jim ’N Nicks Bar-B-Q again providing the food and First Tennessee Bank donating the T-shirts as a first-time sponsor, hundreds of students fell in line to grab a tasty bite and interact with Jones College faculty and staff who welcomed them back for the fall semester in a casual atmosphere.

“This is really the type of thing we need to be doing here at the Jones College to create that culture of camaraderie and oneness that will propel our university and our college forward,” said Dr. David Urban, dean of the Jones College of Business.

An informational booths from the College of Graduate Studies welcomes student during the second annual Back to Business Courtyard Bash held Thursday, Sept. 1, outside the Business and Aerospace Building. The event was hosted by the Jones College of Business. (MTSU photo by Eric Sutton)

An informational booth from the College of Graduate Studies welcomes student during the second annual Back to Business Courtyard Bash held Thursday, Sept. 1, outside the Business and Aerospace Building. The event was hosted by the Jones College of Business. (MTSU photo by Eric Sutton)

Dr. David Urban

Urban noted that of the 23,000 or so Jones College alumni, roughly 80 percent of them stay in the region after graduation, making the college the “top feeder of workplace manpower in this region” and strong contributor to the area’s economic development.

Kelly Prince, event coordinator in the Jones College of Business, said this year’s event also included informational booths from the College of Graduate Studies and the Career Development Center.

“We’re spreading information and creating a culture,” Prince said.

For more information about the Jones College, visit www.mtsu.edu/business.

— Jimmy Hart (jimmy.hart@mtsu.edu)

Dr. Charles Apigian, chair of the Department of Computer Information Systems, chats with a student Thursday, Sept. 1, during the second annual Back to Business Courtyard Bash outside the Business and Aerospace Building. The event was hosted by the Jones College of Business. (MTSU photo by Eric Sutton)