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The Williams College of Business

Centers of Excellence

Centers extend the opportunities for students and faculty beyond our majors and departments.

These opportunities are often community, experiential learning, and/or research-based, so as to not only strengthen the skills of our students, but at the same time, provide real-world experience and offer value to our community.

Center for International Business

The Center for International Business builds international relationships with multi-national corporations and educational institutions that allow for unique opportunities for WCB students and faculty. Specifically, the center provides expertise and resources to facilitate innovative and specialized international study programs and internship opportunities that enhance our students' academic and professional development. The programs are designed to equip the students with a global mindset, sensitivity, and real-world problem-solving capabilities that help them become valuable assets to the organizations in which they work upon graduation.

Center for Women in Business and Leadership

The Center for Women in Business and Leadership provides focused and intentional efforts in these areas:

  • ATTRACTING young women to study business by exposing them to a variety career paths from an early age. This includes targeted outreach to middle and high school girls to broaden awareness about what it means to “go into business” with the goal of providing experiential learning experiences that will excite and motivate them to learn more while demystifying the unknown. Through this process girls can gain confidence, learn useful skills such as creativity, dealing with failure, and problem-solving.
  • EDUCATING women at the Williams College of Business and across the broader University community not only the theory, but also the application of their chosen discipline. This includes how to navigate obstacles that may impede their success and progress. Ultimately, this strong academic footing will lead to greater choice for students in their chosen field.
  • SUPPORTING women in their personal and professional development through continued education, networking, and coaching so they are empowered to make informed decisions. Often times women are forced into an either/or mentality when it comes to personal and career choices. Our intent is to broaden the conversation and teach women it is possible to have both a rich personal life and promising career at the same time.
  • ELEVATING women into leadership positions in both profit and non-profit organizations. Women succeed in the classroom AND in the boardroom.
  • Contact Karen Eutsler ( eutslerk@xavier.edu) to learn more.

Sedler Family Center for Experiential Learning

Empowering student success through experiential learning!Experiential Learning is the process of learning by doing, and encompasses a variety of activities, skills, and values from direct experiences that complement students’ traditional academic settings and offers students a way to amplify their classroom learning with real-world business experiences to help students improve career outcomes.

The Sedler Family Center for Experiential Learning in Business is a hands-on learning hub that operates under the Xavier University Williams College of Business. Committed to furthering Jesuit Values, the Xavier mission and transformative student learning, the Sedler Center creates experiential learning opportunities that help students develop business skills and build relationships that lead to high-quality jobs.Get involved and:

  • EXPERIENCE COMMUNITY serving as a Student Ambassador, connecting within and outside of Xavier through event collaborations and co-sponsored initiatives, and being involved in corporate and startup ecosystems.
  • EXPERIENCE STUDENT-LED VENTURES by working as a student consultant for the student-run digital marketing agency, Xavier Element, as a student General Manager or Department Head of the on-campus Better Blend Xavier franchise, or as a student leader of Sedler XCEL's immersive projects, events, and workshops.
  • EXPERIENCE WHAT WE OFFER whether its a company visit, networking, classroom integration, workshop, an annual trip, or real-world business experience. 

Fifth Third Trading Center

The Fifth Third Trading Center is a student-managed facility committed to the study and application of finance. The Center:

  • Offers hands-on, practical training and classroom integration of state-of-the-art technology including the nation's largest educational access point to Bloomberg LP financial software - the standard on Wall Street and throughout the global financial industry.
  • Conducts and facilitates research in finance and financial economics for in-house purposes as well as for the students and faculty of the Williams College of Business.
  • Promotes financial education through student and faculty workshops, community outreach programs, executive education, economic and investment forums, and a professional speaker series.
  • Provides facilities and oversight for the student-managed equity and fixed-income funds, as well as the student managed financial economics magazine - the Bellwether.

Stephen S. Smith Center

The Smith Scholars Program is a Williams College of Business (WCB) undergraduate, cohort honors program. The program provides a challenging and comprehensive learning opportunity for students who want to pursue a business major that is enriched by an in-depth study of the liberal arts. Graduates of the program will become leaders of organizations, academicians, and professionals in a world that is increasingly diverse and complex.

  • RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP: The Smith Center supports scholarship and research that contributes to the intellectual capital on a breadth of interdisciplinary topics impacting society, such as: freedom and individualism, the rule of law, capitalism and collectivism, economic policy, and global economic issues.
  • OUTREACH: The Smith Center supports and promotes debate and dialogue. The Center hosts speaker forums, symposiums, and roundtable discussions to engage both the Xavier University community and the public in an objective examination of economic and social issues impacting society.
The mission of the Stephen S. Smith Center in the Williams College of Business at Xavier University is to promote learning, scholarship, and debate about fundamental questions and ideas that impact society.  The Center uses an interdisciplinary approach to examine such questions, emphasizing the study of economics and its relationship to law, political philosophy, and history.

Xavier Leadership Center (XLC)

The Xavier Leadership Center provides today's working professionals with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful.

  • We offer a wide range of programs, in areas such as leading and managing others, enhancing personal effectiveness and developing broader/deeper business knowledge.
  • Our hands-on approach to learning and leading helps develop managers who can inspire, engage and empower others to make a difference in their organizations.
  • XLC offers open enrollment programs through its  Corporate University , as well as custom-tailored learning and leading solutions for many of the area's leading companies.
  • Contact Susan Whitaker ( whitakers5@xavier.edu / 513.745.3230) to learn more.