Kelley Lights Son's Fire for Learning

Jim and Sue Minard

Parents of Kevin

Jim Minard jokingly calls himself a “helicopter parent” but he's really more of an “airplane parent.”

The amateur pilot and businessman, who owns a small construction and property management company in Valparaiso, regularly flies himself and his wife, Sue, in their single-engine Piper Saratoga down to Bloomington to visit their son, Kevin, a junior at the Kelley School. While here, the family enjoys tailgating at football games, trying new restaurants, and hearing all about Kevin's studies. These parents are impressed.

“I'm pretty enthusiastic about the Kelley School,” says Jim. “It has lit Kevin's fire for knowledge in a way we've never seen. He was never a numbers kid before, but now he is trying to apply to Kelley's 3/2 MBA in Accounting program. He loves accounting so much that he's taking summer school. To see a young mind open up and absorb knowledge like Kevin's is doing—I have to give credit to Kelley.”

Jim admits to being hesitant about sending his only child to Bloomington and its “sea of 30,000 students,” but he started coming around to the idea when Kevin was in high school and researching business schools. Kevin and his family visited several campuses all over the country, but the Kelley School quickly became the frontrunner.

“We were completely bowled over by IU. They just made Kevin feel so welcome here. That's when we met [Kelley director of development] Bryan Melvin, who arranged for Kevin to sit in on a Kelley presentation,” says Jim. “Everyone at Kelley just focused on Kevin—and it really made him feel connected. When he was accepted to Kelley as a direct admit in December of his senior year, the search was over for him.”

But the amazing Kelley knowledge was just beginning. A participant in the Kelley School's Emerging Markets Experience, Kevin studied emerging economies in conjunction with required course work that culminated in a trip to India. “That changed his life,” says Jim. “It opened his eyes to so many aspects of another country: culture, government, social. When people talk about globalization and outsourcing, now he gets it.”

Seeing Kevin's success is satisfying to Jim. “My wife and I have always made sure that education is primary in Kevin's life,” he says. “There's more to life than money and power. There's pride and accomplishment and credentials—that's what Kevin is getting here at Kelley.”

In Brief

What three words would you use to describe the Kelley School?

“Action, passion, and hope. Kelley instills all three in its students, staff, and the communities it operates within.”

What has most impressed you about Kelley?

“The Kelley Advantage! In 2007, 90 percent of Kelley graduates had job offers. If a student commits, Kelley delivers. In today's value exchange, that's impressive. Ann's experiences in the internship search process really proved this to be true: the nationally ranked Undergraduate Career Services Office supports and provides opportunities for all Kelley students.”