Whitman students honored at 2011 Salzberg Memorial Program

Two Whitman School of Management students were honored with awards for their academic achievements in supply chain management at the 62nd annual Harry E. Salzberg Memorial Lecture Program this fall.

Roz Amirfazli ’12 received the Robert H. Brethen Prize, given to an outstanding junior studying supply chain management. The $10,000 merit-based award is granted based on academic achievement, professional involvement and an original essay focusing on a contemporary topic in supply chain management. The Brethen Prize was established in 1985 by Brethen’s colleague, Harold Croghan. Brethen ’49, who once served as a Syracuse University Trustee, endowed the Robert H. Brethen Operations Management Institute at Whitman in 1988.

Amirfazli’s essay, “Finding the Balance: Resiliency in a Lean Supply Chain,” showed that while lean supply chain operations are more efficient, they need to “maintain a balance of leniency and resiliency” to respond to potential disruptions. Amirfazli, who is from Evergreen, Colo., was an intern at the Altria Group Distribution Co. in Richmond, Va., last summer. She received the Marion Meyer Award for achieving the most improved grade point average at Whitman in 2010.

Ashley Williams ’12 received the annual Zinsmeister Prize for excellence in supply chain management. The award, which recognizes the top supply chain management senior based on academic and leadership achievement, was established by Joanne Zinsmeister-Yarwood in memory of her husband. The Zinsmeister Award was first awarded in 1997.

A native of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, Williams is a member of SU’s varsity volleyball team and was project leader for the Students in Free Enterprise (SU-SIFE) Rescue Mission project. A member of the Big East All-Academic Team, Williams was a sales intern at Pratt & Whitney in East Hartford, Conn., last summer.

“We are proud to recognize Ashley and Roz for their achievements as supply chain majors in the Whitman School,” says Gary La Point, director of the Salzberg program, co-director of the H.H. Franklin Center for Supply Chain Management and assistant professor of supply chain practice at Whitman.