Blog Archive Beyond the MBA Classroom Fuquas MBA Games and Auction

Blog Archive Beyond the MBA Classroom Fuquas MBA Games and Auction When you select an MBA program, you are not just choosing your learning environment, but are also making a commitment to a community. Each Thursday, we offer a window into life “beyond the MBA classroom” at a top business school. MBA Games is a collection of events that take place throughout the academic year at Duke Universitys Fuqua School of Business and culminate in a weekend of competition each spring.  The purpose of MBA Gamesâ€"which draws teams of students from 12â€"16 other North American business schoolsâ€"is to support Special Olympics North Carolina. Students do this by volunteering for events each month  (e.g., tailgating, skating, bowling) with athletes from the organization  and by participating in various fundraising events (e.g., sports tournaments, organized races, parties) and auctions (like the one described in the following paragraph). The MBA Games site proclaims that since the event’s founding in 1989, it has helped raise more than $1.8M for Special Olympics North Carolina. Each year, Fuqua Partners  organizes a fundraising auction for MBA Gamesâ€"the school’s Web site describes it as “Fuqua’s largest annual philanthropy event.” One alumnus recalled how he bid on and won the opportunity to sumo wrestle one of the core professors, with both of them wearing humongous padded suits. The auction takes place during a Fuqua Friday in mid-February. Students and professors bid on dozens of items donated by corporate sponsors and members of the Fuqua community. Donations have been as varied as dinners/lunches with several professors and Duke University President Richard Brodhead, a VIP table at a Black Eyed Peas afterparty, a three-night golf vacation on South Carolina’s Kiawah Island, a UNC/Duke beer-pong table and a one-on-one basketball game with former NBA player Pat Garrity. The auction has both a silent component and a live, called component. The event was themed Fuqua Vegas in February 2013, and in 2012, raised more than $40,000, reportedly a rec ord total. For in-depth descriptions of social and community activities at Duke Fuqua and 15 other top MBA programs, check out the mbaMission Insider’s Guides. Share ThisTweet Beyond the MBA Classroom Duke University (Fuqua)