Published: May 18, 2011

May. 18, 2011

Hey, I’m Steve and I am excited to be part of the incoming Net Impact leadership at the Leeds MBA program! Even more so, I am ready to start interning with a telecom company in Denver over the summer where I will be helping them define and analyze their sustainability reporting and initiatives. This is exactly what I was looking for out of my return to school but it’s really part of a series of events that led me here to the University of Colorado.

As an undergrad at Ohio State (yes,TheOhio State University) I became dedicated to studying where the environment meets people. I took extra classes and had exposure to great professors through their business school as well as a minor in their environmental studies program. Leading out of school I was fortunate to get into a multi-national energy marketing company that took me to different places all over the Midwest United States, and eventually to Denver. After a few years and an economic downturn, I decided the it was opportune to return to school. I knew I wanted to become involved in the 3E’s, 3P’s and all that is sustainability in Colorado. I was accepted at Leeds and never looked back.

During my first year at Leeds I have really come into my own. Boulder is one of the best places I have lived — it’s scenic, there’s great beer, and we are close to unrivaled skiing and riding. But back to school … I definitely contributed inside and outside of the classroom and feel it has paid off. The coursework is challenging, and I was impressed with the pedigree of our faculty. I am also very pleased at the relationships I have formed in our class. One of the strengths I see in our class is the diversity of backgrounds and experiences, which all have surprisingly similar interests in Entrepreneurship, Environment, and Social Responsibility. I found that particularly the sustainability staff at the business school are extremely competent, and helpful to those students that show interest. I also became heavily involved in the Net Impact club, attending and helping host events, also volunteering for the Net Impact Case Competition we host here every year. As Net Impact’s Co-President, I am committed to keeping these trends alive and I know we will have plenty of opportunities for incoming students to fulfill. I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences and hope you can check us out! (Oh, and if you were curious, 3E’s = Economy, Environment, Equity and the 3P’s = People, Planet, Profit.)


f: “CU-Leeds Net Impact Club”
t: @CULeeds_NI

- Steve Ross