Pamplin alumni and EY receive awards for service, career achievements

3 Dec 2019

Photo montage showing, left to right, top row: Tim Chase, Rishav Khanal, Matthew Ogburn; bottom: Mallory Tuttle; Pamplin dean Robert Sumichrast (second from right) with Virginia Tech alumni and EY employees ??, Baback Bazri, Negar Jamshidimehr, Shirley Edwards, Dan Lasik, and ?? — left to right, top row: Tim Chase, Rishav Khanal, Matthew Ogburn; bottom: Mallory Tuttle. Group photo shows Pamplin dean Robert Sumichrast (second from right) with Pamplin alumni who work at EY: Brian Benson, Baback Bazri, Negar Jamshidimehr, Shirley Edwards, Dan Lasik, and Tom Bornemann.

The Pamplin College of Business recently honored four alumni and one company with awards recognizing professional achievements, community service, and support of the college and its students.

The recipients were Tim Chase, Rishav Khanal, Matthew Ogburn, Mallory Tuttle, and EY (more on them below). The annual awards were presented during the inaugural Pamplin Engagement Summit held recently at the Hotel Roanoke.

The awards were initiated by the Pamplin Society, a volunteer group that seeks to promote, support, and improve the college and to enhance alumni engagement by recognizing their contributions.

Chase, who earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and operations research in 1986 and an MBA in 1991, received the Mentoring Award, which recognizes a “distinguished individual who consistently embodies the spirit of mentorship of Pamplin students, graduates, and those in their local community.”

He is a principal with Deloitte Consulting and a leader within its U.S. Government and Public Services practice. He is a member of the MBA Advisory Board and leads the student engagement committee. Chase has been instrumental in the establishment of a mentoring program for Virginia Tech MBA students that makes around 60 mentor matches each year, engaging hundreds of MBA students and alumni.

Khanal, who earned a bachelor’s degree in business information technology in 2018, received the Rising Young Alumni Award, which honors graduates within the past 10 years “who have achieved distinguished recognition in their career or in rendering service to Virginia Tech since graduation.”

Khanal is a business solutions consultant at LinkedIn. He is a co-author of the book, "Experience Over Degrees," and co-host and creator of the Practically Passionate podcast. A former food stamp and free lunch recipient, Khanal said his hardships have helped shape his purpose in building a community to help young professionals become more resourceful.

Matthew Ogburn, who received undergraduate degrees in finance and political science in 2004, and Mallory Tuttle, who received a master’s degree in hospitality and tourism management in 2014, each received the Ut Prosim Award, which honors an alumnus of at least five years with a distinguished record of community service, reflecting the spirit of Virginia Tech’s motto.

Ogburn is an executive and business development lead in Accenture Finance & Enterprise Performance and a principal with Mustin Capital Management & Consulting Group.

His community service includes leadership roles at the Duane Perdue Memorial Foundation, the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southwest Virginia, and the American Cancer Society. His university activities include board or committee service at the Virginia Tech Athletic Fund (VTAF/Hokie Club), the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, and the Pamplin Society; mentoring in the Pamplin Undergraduate Mentoring Program; and philanthropy.

Tuttle is associate director of the Virginia Tech Hampton Roads Centers. She serves as a member of the Portsmouth Service League Executive Board and the Portsmouth Museums Foundation Board. Nominators noted her commitment, hard work, creativity, and “organizational skills and ability to motivate her peers to volunteer for a greater good.”

Her recognitions include being listed among CoVaBiz Magazine’s Millennials on the Move and Inside Business’ Top 40 Under 40 in Hampton Roads.

EY received the Corporate Ambassador Award, given to “a company that has demonstrated prolonged support of Pamplin’s mission and its students.” A global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services, EY is one of the top five employers of Pamplin graduates.

Alumni who work at EY give back to the college and university in ways that include advisory board service and classroom lectures. They also support Virginia Tech through philanthropy, including through an employer-matching gifts fund for the Department of Accounting and Information Systems that a group of EY partners established nearly a decade ago.

Read the full story on these awards and more in the fall 2019 issue of Virginia Tech Business, the magazine of the Pamplin College of Business.

— Written by Sookhan Ho