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Club Spotlight:
THE WHARTON CLUB OF
SEATTLE: ATTRACTING
MANY YOUNG ALUMNI
Thanks to the ubiquitous
Microsoft, most people now
think of Seattle as a hotbed
of technology rather than the
rainy and distant metropolis
that was portrayed in the
movie "Sleepless in Seattle"
back in 1993. As a result,
the city now attracts many
young alumni who are pursuing
careers in Technology
or Telecom, or who are just
heeding the call to "go west,
young man." Many newcomers
are surprised to find
that the weather is, contrary
to what is reported, often
sunny and pleasant. And
there are those who believe
that the locals conspire to
keep the good weather a
secret in an attempt to slow
down the influx of easterners
and Californians.
Like the city, Seattle's
Wharton Club has seen tremendous
growth over the past
several years. Due to its size,
the Club in Seattle is co-led
by Alexa Chiang (C'92), Julie
Lin (WG'97) and other Penn
and Wharton alumni. The
Club has been focusing on
providing its members with
opportunities to network
with other professionals, reconnect with their classmates,
and stay informed about the
latest news of the School.
The centerpiece of the
Club's programming is
the semi-annual Executive
Speaker Series, which invites
Wharton alumni and local
business executives to share
their insights on their success
and their industries.
In addition to a visit by
Dean Patrick T. Harker,
the Club has had the good
fortune to host Jean Bartel
of Bartel Drug, Craig Tall of
Washington Mutual, executives
with Safeco Insurance,
and Tom T. O'Keefe of
Tully's Coffee Corporation.
The Club has also had
group presentations, including
an Entrepreneur Panel
Discussion featuring Terry
Drayton, John Lusk, Andy
Liu, Jon Staenberg, G. Kevin
Doren, and David McShea
speaking on "Lessons from
the Crash and the Outlook
Today for Starting Your Own
Company." In these events,
alumni got the opportunity
to listen to industry veterans
about their experience on
various topics, such as retail
competition, merger and
acquisition in the financial
industry, and entrepreneur's
do's and don'ts.
In addition to the
Executive Speaker Series,
the Wharton Club participates
in a number of events
in conjunction with other
schools. The Wharton Club
in Seattle is a founding
member of Seattle Business
School Alliance (SBSA), an
alliance whose mission is
to unite Seattle area's business
school alumni through
various coordinated educational,
social and networking
events. The Club also shares
social events with its Penn
brethren, whose focus is
more on social, sports, and
cultural-type events such as
curling, Penn Jazz Ensemble,
and happy hour.
If you are moving to
Seattle or plan on visiting
Seattle, please drop a line to
hartoninseattle@yahoo.com, and we will provide
you the information on
the latest events. Or you
can visit Wharton's online
club directory at www.wharton.upenn.edu/alumni/clubs and click on
the Penn-Wharton Club of
Seattle link to find out about
upcoming events.
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