Creating the business experiences undergraduates should have.

Jennifer Chagnon is the Associate Director of Business in Practice at UNH’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics. She has been a part of the program since its inception, pilot, and continued development. In partnership with Neil, she collaborates on all program development and the strategic direction. An artist at heart, Jen translates vision into tangible experiences, and a functioning program. 

Jen has over 13 years of experience in higher education, including 9 years in recruitment & enrollment management, and 5+ years of experience in academic affairs and academic programming. Jen earned a B.A. in Business Management and Studio Fine Art from Juniata College.  

Creating Masterclasses for Undergraduates

FOR RELEASE ON JUNE 24 AT 3:42 PM

Contact: Jennifer Chaganon

Phone: 603-862-3335

Email: Jennifer.chagnon@unh.edu

CREATING MASTERCLASSES FOR THE UNDERGRADUATES

The BiP program provides hands-on courses taught by real-world professionals that involve developing hard and soft skills through active learning activities.

The course itself focuses on brand licensing, character licensing, sports licensing, collaborations, and strategic alliances, as well as learning the roles, responsibilities and relationship dynamic between the Licensor & Licensee and developing the skills necessary to assess brand and company readiness.

Lawrence’s additional background experience in licensing includes working for companies such as the Disney Company, The LEGO Group, Wolverine Worldwide.

“It’s very important for students to understand that what they’re learning in the classroom actually applies in the real world,” said Lawrence. “In the case of product licensing or brand licensing, many students don’t know that this type of business and career path even exists.”

Students spend seven weeks learning how to propose a product licensing strategy with a company that aligns with the Travel, Home, or Wellness categories of Vera Bradley.

Barriers in the class are broken down to create a welcoming environment for students to learn exactly what life after graduation could be like in their future careers.

“Getting to work with an industry professional in a classroom setting takes away the intimidation that would be present otherwise. I was really comfortable asking questions in class and emailing Stephanie on my personal time. I’m so grateful to have learned from her and have her as a connection for future endeavors,” said Kelly.

The course was mutually beneficial – as in addition to students learning from Lawrence, she also got to learn from them.

One group of students proposed a partnership with Hydro Flask for their project, a popular insulated water bottle company among younger demographics. Lawrence found this beneficial, as she was able to take it to the next level by pursuing a collaboration between Vera Bradley and Hydro Flask.

“It keeps you fresh, it keeps you connected to the vibrations that are going on at the ground level, at the collegiate level, and that’s what’s been really rewarding for me to keep that edge and my finger on the pulse of what’s going on out there,” Lawrence concluded.

With industry professionals as our partners, the Business in Practice (BiP) program offers undergraduates authentic, learning experiences aimed at developing those smart skills most in-demand by employers. The Business in Practice program is an experiential learning program where industry professionals co-design and deliver one-of-a-kind courses that guide students through current business tool applications and processes. As part of UNH’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics, BiP offers over 60 courses per year for 2300+ undergraduate business students. BiP has partnered with professionals from companies such as Amazon Web Services, DOMO, Facebook, Fidelity, HubSpot, Morgan Stanley, Vera Bradley, Wolverine, and Zillow. The BiP program creates the experiences undergraduate should have.

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For more information on this topic, please contact Jennifer.Chagnon@unh.edu or call 603-862-3335.

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Stephanie Lawrence

Stephanie Lawrence has the pleasure of working for Vera Bradley Designs, Inc. based in Roanoke, Indiana, leading its Brand extension initiative through licensing, collaborations, strategic partnerships and acquisitions. Throughout her career, she has had the privilege of developing product portfolios for several world–class companies & Brands: The Walt Disney Company, The Timberland Company, Spalding Sports Worldwide, The LEGO Group and Sperry Top Sider, a division of Wolverine Worldwide. 

Long version: At present, I have the pleasure of working for Vera Bradley Designs, Inc. based in Roanoke, Indiana, leading its Brand extension initiative through licensing, collaborations, strategic partnerships and acquisitions. Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of developing product portfolios for several world–class companies & Brands: The Walt Disney Company, The Timberland Company, Spalding Sports Worldwide, The LEGO Group and Sperry Top Sider, a division of Wolverine Worldwide. Each Brand has brought a unique challenge to the fore and I have learned equally as much from my successes as from my failures. I attribute some of what makes me unique in my role for the Brands that I have shaped is my aptitude for both art & science. I grew up in West Boylston, Massachusetts in a family of artists and craftsmen –learning how to create, build & fix things. I was also an anomaly in that I was the only competitive athlete –earning the title of AAU Junior Olympic Champion in Synchronized Swimming. The “science” side of me brought me to the University of Rhode Island where I earned my Bachelor of Science in Education –certified to teach Secondary Biology, Chemistry and General Science –and where I met my husband of 33 years, Matt. Together, we have raised two sons, lived in 3 states (New Hampshire is our favorite) and now enjoy spoiling our 2 grandsons, ages 7 and 2. In my role at Vera Bradley, I was afforded the opportunity to virtually teach a class segment at The Ohio State University on “Licensing: The Relationship Dynamic between Licensee & Licensor” and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. So much so, that I have I have made it a personal goal of mine to expose students to the art & discipline of licensing as an approach for Business & Brand Development, as well as rewarding career path.

Ceara Kelly

Ceara Kelly is a [transfer?] sophomore Marketing major at Paul College. She has taken her first 2 semesters here at UNH to make meaningful relationships with her professors and develop her knowledge of marketing through her coursework. The Product Licensing BiP allowed her to get real-world experience and make a deep connection with industry professional, Stephanie Lawrence.