Saturday, April 29, Specialist Professor of Management and Decision Sciences, John Buzza’s small business management class will be holding the Ms. Senior America Talent Competition for the organization Senior America, Inc. The event begins at 1:00 p.m., in Pollak Theatre, free of charge.
According to their website, Senior America Inc., is a non-profit organization that is “designed not only to enrich the lives of seniors but also to tap their energy to enrich the lives of others.” Known for their Ms. Senior Pageant, the organization emphasizes that their seniors are the foundation that helps to build a future, and supports them in the pursuit of continuing to seek personal growth.
Organizing the event was a semester-long project for members of Buzza’s class in which students are assigned an organization that they have to organize an event including everything from getting participants to planning the schedule, as well as marketing for the event itself.
“As always, I hope our students get an opportunity to grow outside of the classroom and to garner experiences that they would not get through lectures and classroom rigors. Best case would be through the connections made and the experiences gained, if it could lead to a job in this or any industry,” said Buzza.
Students’ duties in putting together this event were to not only acknowledge the young and beautiful Ms. America, but to promote and encourage the Ms. Senior America as well. It offered students the opportunity to work in with a unique, interesting organization and to raise awareness about it.
“The significance is to raise awareness of the event itself, but more importantly to give our students an opportunity to network with seasoned professionals in a business that flies under the radar,” Buzza added.
Jessica Pinto, a senior marketing student who is one of the leaders of the Senior America Inc. event, said, “the best part of working on the project was having some real-world experience with someone who works in business.”
“Taking on responsibilities made it feel like it was a real job. There were several ups and downs throughout the project, and that is what made it feel real. The business world doesn’t run smoothly,” Pinto said.
The event will showcase 16 seniors, all women who have competed in the popular pageant previously, and will feature singing, dancing, and comedic acts.
Last year’s Ms. America, Diane Deluca, will be performing her rendition of the song The Glory of Love from the movie Beaches. The event will also feature a mother-daughter duo, Norma, the Ms. Senior Queen of 1989 and Sherri McGhie, Ms. Senior Queen of 2015. Both women will be performing their own acts, respectively, with Norma taking on a comedy act, and Sherri singing You’re Good to Mama from Kander and Bill.
“We are hoping for a big turnout on April 29th. These women have volunteered their time, and we want them to have a great crowd in the audience at Pollak Theater. We hope people of all ages will attend and enjoy the show we have planned,” said Pinto.
