7:45 a.m.
It’s a bright, brisk September morning as the first shuttles of the day roll up to Bryant University’s new Business Entrepreneurship Leadership Center (BELC). Stepping off the transport at the edge of the sidewalk, Soultana Kreatsoulas ’27 is on her way to Professor Christopher Roethlein, Ph.D.,’s 8 a.m. “Operations Management” course, her first class on the first day of the fall semester.

On the ride over, she meets two other students, Julia Senus ’27 and Gabrielle Piehler ’27, who are off to classes of their own. The brand-new BELC is the topic of discussion and there’s a sense of the unexpected.

They’re the first to learn here, to mark an important moment in Bryant’s history.

As she enters the BELC’s lobby, Kreatsoulas is greeted by a balloon arch. There’s also a bottleneck at the door as many of the students pause a few steps past the threshold.

They’re eager to take it all in.

8:05 a.m.
Usually Roethlein’s classes start right on time. Today, though, there’s a slight delay, a concession to students finding their way in the new building.

When class does start, as per usual, he begins with an introduction. He outlines his career in industry — from testing jet engines to helping to design the latch that keeps Stanley ovens closed as they self-clean — and gives them the basics of the course and what they’ll learn, including operations strategy, process design, quality control, inventory theory, and project management.  

But he also wants to hear from them. Roethlein draws three columns on the blackboard with three questions:

• What do you expect from me/this course? 
• What can I expect from you?
• What are your fears regarding the course?

As the designated spokesperson for his group, and the first to speak in the class, Carter Scott ’25 does the brave thing: He is honest. There’s some anxiety in the room, he admits, about the reputed difficulty of the course, about learning in the new building, and about the start of the semester in general.

Roethlein appreciates that honesty and matches it with some of his own. “I treat this course as a job,” he admits, and he holds his students to high standards. But that’s because he knows they can rise to the occasion and achieve more than they ever thought possible. He’s been proven right every semester for nearly 25 years, he states.

And every step of the way, Roethlein vows, he’ll be with them. Treat me as a resource, he promises — and put in the effort — and you’ll get more out of the course than you could ever imagine.

Roethlein concludes the session with an offer. “You have an amazing opportunity in front of you, but you need to rise to that opportunity,” Roethlein notes. “Do we have a deal?”

Operations Management is about continuous improvement, making sure you’re at the head of the cure and even in front of it, notes Roethlein — and that’s exactly what the BELC represents. It’s about rethinking spaces, technologies, and delivery systems to maximize teaching and learning. “It’s about providing the education our students deserve,” he says firmly.

But then there are some things that will never go out of style, Roethlein adds: mutual respect, individual attention, and a desire to make sure students excel at their fullest potential. These are the hallmarks of a Bryant education, past, present, and far into the future.

9:15 a.m.
When Scott steps out into the hall, he passes Todd Alessandri, Ph.D., Bryant’s new dean of the College of Business, who is playing the role of proud parent today — greeting students, sitting in on classes, and shepherding the lost. “This is a landmark moment for everyone at Bryant,” he notes. “Today, students will begin to see all of the incredible opportunities open to them at the Business Entrepreneurship Leadership Center, which is going to allow both students and faculty to do things they never been able to do before.”

The state-of-the-art, 250,000-square-foot center, a cornerstone of Bryant’s Campus Master Plan, is the new home of Bryant’s College of Business. It features centers that promote leadership and entrepreneurship; cutting-edge labs dedicated to artificial intelligence, data analytics, design thinking, and sales; as well as other spaces designed to foster innovation and future-focused learning. And like all good homes, it welcomes everyone, no matter their discipline.

Today is an exciting day, Alessandri says, and one tinged with anticipation. “All of Bryant’s students will be able to do some very special and unique things here,” he says. “And it’s an opportunity for all of us to move forward together.”

One of Alessandri’s stops is Executive in Residence and finance department chair Kevin Maloney’s “Debt Securities, Derivatives, and Investing” course, held in Bryant’s new Financial Markets Center. The class is the opening sequence for the Archway Investment Fund’s Fixed Income student portfolio managers who, next semester, will control a live portfolio and make real trades with real consequences. For now, though, under Maloney’s tutelage, they’re learning what it takes to excel in a fast-paced, competitive, and often unpredictable market.

The subject matter is thematically appropriate for a day devoted to introducing students to the new possibilities of the BELC, Maloney acknowledges. “Today is about setting the stage, and building the foundations, for all of the conversations we’re going to have in the future,” he says.

The goal of the Archway Investment Fund is immersion, notes Maloney. Experience is the best teacher, and the new Financial Markets Center is built with that in mind. Along the back wall are banks of Bloomberg terminals, the same high-end machines that professional traders around the world use every day. Even the flow of the room is dynamic, allowing for quick reconfigurations and agile discussions.

But Maloney is most excited for how those discussions will spill out beyond the confines of the Financial Markets Center. “They’re going to be doing a lot thinking and learning together outside the classroom here,” he points out.

Joseph Belisanti ’25 and his classmates Tanner McLaughlin ’25 and Xander Honor ’25 can hardly contain their excitement and anticipation throughout the class; they even got to the BELC early this morning to explore the new building. “It’s unbelievable to have class in a space like this,” says Bellisanti — and he’s already imagining how he’ll use the terminals as a portfolio manager.

9:35 a.m.
There’s a rush to data science, Suhong Li, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Information Systems and Analytics department, tells her “Big Data Analytics” students. The field is always changing, and technology evolves at an ever-increasing pace.

And with that evolution comes power.

“Data scientist has become the sexiest job in the world,” she laughs.

Big data is one of the fastest growing subsets of the discipline, Li notes, and then asks the students what it means to them.

“It means we’re able to analyze things that we never were able to before,” suggests Trevor Francis ’25.

That’s a good start, Li agrees. And this semester, this class will be part of that analysis, looking at real datasets generated by corporate partners Amica Insurance and AAA Northeast.

Li then shows off the Data Visualization Lab’s powerful new graphics processing unit (GPU) machines and high-performance servers. The students are suitably impressed, but they also take a second to note the room’s ergonomic, adjustable desks as well.

Francis has been preparing for an opportunity like this for years. He’s long been interested in artificial intelligence and high-level analysis and how it can be harnessed to understand the world in new ways, from economic modeling to baseball’s sabermetrics.

The new lab, he says, is filled with possibility: “New programs, new equipment, new ideas — that’s what it’s all about.”

Noon
Discovery works up an appetite, and the Corey E. Levine '80 Dining Commons is packed around lunchtime. From chicken muffuletta sandwiches to sweet potato fries to gumbo to cauliflower steak to scrumptious desserts, the Bryant community is eager to try it all.

The Levine Dining Commons plays an important role at the BELC, says Jeff McClure, vice president of culinary services for AVI, Bryant’s food service provider. It offers a forum for community, conversation, and celebration. “Food is family and food is love,” McClure says simply. “It brings us all together and makes being together special.”

And the fact that the Roman pizza is especially delicious today doesn’t hurt either, he adds.

In the dining area proper, there’s a buzz as the students discuss their first day, and what it means going forward as they enjoy their meals. For three years, seniors Berenika Belenkiy ’25 and her friend Kyra Sette ’25 have excelled in their studies and been involved in a wide range of campus programs and activities. In short, they know Bryant as well as anyone.

But now, though, “It’s a new adventure,” Belenkiy notes. There’s a sense of momentum, being in the new building, Belenkiy explains, it feels like a tangible reminder of how Bryant is growing and evolving as it embraces the future, she says.

2:20 p.m.
After lunch, the director of Bryant’s Digital Marketing program, Professor Sharmin Attaran, Ph.D., introduces the new Digital Marketing Lab to her capstone students. “The space you’re in right now was specifically designed for this,” she notes. Everything in the lab, from the Ad Wall, where students can see how marketing campaigns will look across a variety of devices and operating systems, to the pods, where they can work together in groups, was purpose-built. Next door, a content creator space is equipped with Camtasia video editing software, a green screen, lighting rigs, and other tools of the trade.

But there’s no time to pause and admire the new equipment, Attaran tells the class. They’re about to dive into an international digital marketing competition where, in just two months' time, they’ll devise a complete marketing campaign for a real company.  

Bryant students have done exceptionally well in the competition in recent years — including taking first place overall in 2022. Things are a little different this year, though. “Now we have the tools to do something really special,” Attaran says.

That suits Reagan Lord ’25 just fine. She’s already done some digital marketing work as an intern and freelances on the side. Lord says she is excited to get her hands on the new lab’s equipment, especially the editing software.

“This is a chance to actually use professional tools and find out what they’re capable of and how we can be creative with them,” she says.

So bring on the international competition; Lord is ready.

Dusk
The shadows are getting long as Bryant University President Ross Gittell, Ph.D., accompanied by Dave Wegrzyn '86, P'23, vice president of university advancement, boards the BELC shuttle and head home. Gittell has spent much of the day visiting the new lab spaces, sitting in on classes, and talking with students.

“So many people came together to make today possible,” Gittell notes to Wegrzyn. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, and donors all played a role in planning, funding, and creating the BELC, even if all of them weren’t there to witness it in person.

It’s been an historic day, says Gittell, and the culmination of an entire community’s work — but Bryant’s not done yet. “This isn’t the end of our new beginning; it’s just the start,” says Gittell. “I’m excited about where we’re going next.”

And then the bus departs, marking the close of a day of new adventures, new beginnings, and new possibilities.

On to day two. 

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The Business Entrepreneurship Leadership Center (BELC) is a 250,000-square-foot LEED Gold-certified facility that houses Bryant University’s highly ranked College of Business. It features classrooms and learning labs designed for active learning and student engagement with faculty and corporate partners. The BELC labs include advanced technology and data analytics, simulation, and presentation capabilities for financial services, digital marketing, supply chain management, and professional sales. The BELC is also home to the Ellen Wilson Leadership Center, which empowers students to explore and enrich their leadership potential, and the Center for Entrepreneurship and Design Thinking, which supports students, alumni, and entrepreneurs from across the state of Rhode Island and the region.