In the early months of 1966, preparations were underway for a conference on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis. There, on Aug. 8, 47 men and women from academia, corporate America, the public sector and one charitable foundation gathered to consider two simple questions:
Would it be feasible and worthwhile to form a consortium of top-tier management schools dedicated to driving greater racial diversity among MBA students? And would that drive greater diversity in corporate management positions?
The answer was a resounding yes. Following the August 1966 Feasibility Conference, WashU professor Sterling Schoen ran full speed ahead to begin recruiting the first class of Consortium students.
Now, throughout 2016, we’ll be celebrating our Golden Anniversary. This is the year of the 50th annual Orientation Program & Career Forum. This is the year we celebrate the more than 8,000 alumni, the scores of corporate partners and the 18 member schools who have contributed to our mission.
We’ll be active on the Consortium blog and our social media accounts throughout the year. We’ll hashtag our Golden Anniversary posts with #CGSM50, and we’ll ask you to do the same. Plus, watch out for special programming at the 50th OP in St. Louis June 3-8. But until then, here’s what we have in store for you online during the year:
Monday Blog Special: Watch for special posts each week on the Consortium’s blog. We’ll highlight something about CGSM history; Consortium people who made a difference, or who were particularly influential; or excerpts from a special book project we have underway.
Cool Biz Facts: Tuesdays, we highlight one of our corporate partners and share an interesting tidbit about the company, the management or its products.
You’re 50, too! On Wednesdays, we highlight another institution, agency, tradition or event celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2016. You might be surprised how many we found.
Throwback Thursday: It’s an oldie, but a goodie. So we’ll join in the Thursday fun with throwbacks to Consortium history.
Cool School Facts: Fridays, we highlight one of our member schools and share an interesting tidbit about the school, the management program or its faculty.
As you run across old photos of yourself, or have stories to tell, or even a video to share, please remember to use the hashtag #CGSM50 to share it with us.