June 2004 - Class of Distinction. By Renata Birkenbuel, Jill Carnell and Erin Driscoll.

Distinguished Staff Award
Recognizes Outstanding Service to the University by Its Staff

Michael VerchotMichael Verchot

DEPARTMENT: Business School

ON THE JOB: Staff Director, Business and Economic Development Program. Earned UW M.B.A. in 1995, worked at UW for nine years.

ACHIEVEMENTS: Verchot developed the Business and Economic Development (BEDP) Program, which provides consulting and business expertise to minority-owned businesses through teams of business students. He also organized no-fee business seminars for minority owners and the first Minority CEO Summit, which focused on increasing the number of minority-owned businesses in the state. The program also promotes student diversity through scholarship support and raises $250,000 annually. Verchot also recently brought former Business School Dean Yash Gupta to meet with tribal leaders, including the Colville Tribal Enterprise Corp.

QUOTE: "Michael is the heart and soul of BEDP. He is the visionary that has taken BEDP from an important but narrowly focused and small program to a broad-based outreach program serving a wide range of constituents throughout the state in a multitude of ways." —Roland E. (Pete) Dukes, associate dean for undergraduate programs


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