Sold On Graceland

It’s an in-between time on campus – between first Christmas decorations and festive gatherings and last deadlines for projects, papers or presentations; between tense nerves ahead of final exams and joyous anticipation of the well-earned holiday break.

At the C.H. Sandage School of Business, students are huddled together for finals week pep talks, professors reach into a colleague’s candy jar as they rush by his office, administration wraps up for 2024, and strategization ties up for 2025. In the show-down to an internal competition, three students are facing off: Joseph Boyce ’25 (Majors: Social Change, Marketing), Dieter Horten ’24 (Major: Sport Management) and Moses Ridley ’27 (Majors: Allied Health, Transformational Leadership) deliver their sales pitches toward a hypothetical audience of high school students—convincing them why Graceland University is the best choice for their future.

Their presentations showcase very unique approaches to selling the Graceland experience: Horten with an international perspective, Boyce with a twist, and Ridley with magic.

After briefly retreating for deliberation, the jury consisting of professors Sehwan Kim, PhD (advisor to the Graceland Professional Sales Club/GPSC that sponsored the competition), Robert Poulton, PhD, and Jeffery McElroy, EdD, return to provide individual feedback and announce the winning pitch.

With his strong delivery that made Graceland’s value proposition personally relatable to the target audience, Boyce secures the first prize. “You’re all winners,” Kim commends the enthusiasm, thought and creativity that the three contestants had put into the challenge to successfully close the deal with potential buyers on Graceland as a place to belong, learn and grow.

We wish everyone an equally successful conclusion to the Fall Semester 2024 and another highly accomplished year at Graceland University!