Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf keynote speaker at UNT center lunch

The Murphy Enterprise Center at UNT will present retired Army Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf as the keynote speaker at its Nov. 15 Leadership Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. at the Hotel Inter-Continental in Dallas.

The luncheon will present finalists for the $50,000 Shirley Murphy Entrepreneur Contest and the Murphy Award recognizing outstanding entrepreneurship in addition to Schwarzkopf's address titled "Leadership in Difficult Times."

"We're proud that General Schwarzkopf has accepted our invitation to speak at our awards luncheon," says Lew Taylor, center director and professor of management. "General Schwarzkopf knows the challenges leaders face today. I know his thoughts will be inspirational to all business professionals."

Proceeds from the luncheon will be used to create awards for student entrepreneurs and to develop programs for the Murphy Enterprise Center. Event sponsors include KRLD Radio, the Denton Record-Chronicle, NorthStar Bank, Pinnacle Graphics, the UNT Department of Management, WPI Video Productions, Jackson Walker LLP, SmarteSolutions, UNT President Norval Pohl and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs David Kesterson, and the UNT Office of Development.

Individual tickets are $175 and 10-seat tables are $1,500. Corporate sponsorships are also available. Tickets may be ordered by calling the center at (940) 565-2848. The registration deadline is Nov. 8.

About retired Army Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf

Schwarzkopf's honors include three Silver Stars, three Bronze Stars, two Purple Hearts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He served two combat tours in Vietnam and was deputy commander of the joint task force in the Grenada student rescue operation. As commander in chief during Desert Shield and Desert Storm, he coordinated the efforts of all allied forces following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

A dedicated conservationist, Schwarzkopf is on the Nature Conservancy's President's Conservation Council and is the national spokesman for Recovery of the Grizzly Bear. He is co-founder with Paul Newman of the Boggy Creek Gang, a camp for children with chronic illnesses; is chair of the STARBRIGHT Capital Campaign, which works to improve the quality of life for seriously ill children; and is national spokesman for prostate cancer awareness.

Author of the best-selling book It Doesn't Take A Hero, he speaks to audiences about the challenges of leadership in difficult times.

About the Shirley Murphy Contest

The Shirley Murphy Entrepreneur Contest allows student teams to develop innovative business ideas for new enterprises. Teams are required to create and present business plans and prototypes that demonstrate how their proposed venture can succeed. The contest rules require that competing teams have at least one full-time Texas college or university student in a key management role with a significant ownership position. Teams may include up to five members.

Named for Shirley Murphy, a UNT alumna and cofounder of The Mail Box Inc. of Dallas, the contest is the only one of its kind in Texas and the only national university-sponsored entrepreneur contest allowing people outside the university to compete. Institutions such as Harvard and Purdue offer entrepreneur contests that are strictly limited to students. Winning teams will receive $25,000 for first place, $15,000 for second place and $10,000 for third place.

"This contest is a fantastic educational concept that provides students with real-world entrepreneurial experience," says Eileen Curry Resnik, associate director of the center. "We're helping students make the transition into the work force in a way no other educational institution can. We believe this contest will give students a definite advantage."

About the Murphy Enterprise Center 

The Murphy Enterprise Center, which was created in 1999 with the support of local entrepreneurs and UNT alumni Ken and Shirley Murphy, has a three-pronged approach. The first is to put students first, providing an entrepreneurship education, internships, scholarships, business plans and interaction with faculty and business mentors. The second is accountability to educators, including provisions for academic leadership, research opportunities and innovative educational programs. The third is service to the center's business partners by providing business-world experiences, cost-effective consulting and networking opportunities and by serving as a conduit for cooperative efforts among businesses, the university and the community.

Programs range from the annual Shirley Murphy Entrepreneur Contest, a $50,000 spring business competition, to the Murphy Leadership Forum each fall.

BY RODDY WOLPER rwolper@unt.edu

Other featured articles in this issue

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• McTee's Symphony No. 1 to premiere at Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall
• SECC: State employees' gift to other Texans
• UNT symposium to focus on democracy, markets
• Staff members honored at annual convocation
• UNT linguist keeping language, culture of Pacific Northwest tribes alive
• Halloween events planned at UNT

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