SDSU to Receive $100K from Beyster Fellowship for Employee Ownership Research

Business Wire, April 24, 2008

SAN DIEGO -- The College of Business Administration at San Diego State University (SDSU) announced today that the College's Entrepreneurial Management Center (EMC) has received a $100,000 gift from the Foundation for Enterprise Development[TM] as a Beyster Fellowship. The gift will support research on organizational inclusiveness and equity distribution practices and their performance impacts on San Diego's privately-held life science and technology companies.

The research will offer SDSU faculty the resources needed to develop teaching modules and mini-case studies that can be used in course work and will provide information on the employee ownership practices of San Diego's life sciences and entrepreneurial organizations. The project will begin in June 2008 will be completed within a one-year period.

"This gift is significant in that it studies the influence of employee ownership on a company's structure and performance and allows SDSU to share this valuable data with our students and the business community at-large," said Dr. Sanford Ehrlich, the EMC's QUALCOMM Executive Director of Entrepreneurship.

The Foundation for Enterprise Development was established by Dr. J.R. Beyster, founder of Scientific Applications International Corporation (SAIC) for the purpose of promoting business principles and practices that encourage free enterprise and advance science and technology innovations with impact on nationally important interests.

During the project, the SDSU faculty will work closely with Mary Ann Beyster, who serves as the Foundation's president. "The need for the study and research of employee ownership within corporations is crucial for determining future growth for the San Diego economic region," said Beyster. "This gift will provide the needed resources to fund and distribute this vital information."

About the College of Business Administration

With over 6,000 students, the SDSU College of Business is one of the largest business schools in the U.S. Its programs in undergraduate international business and graduate entrepreneurship are ranked among the top programs in the country by U.S. News and World Report. For more information, visit www.sdsu.edu/business.> About the Entrepreneurial Management Center

San Diego State University's Entrepreneurial Management Center (EMC) is dedicated to providing the regional entrepreneurial community with tools and skills necessary for venture creation and growth. The privately-funded Center promotes better knowledge and understanding of the entrepreneurial process through experiential learning. More information is available at www.sdsu.edu/emc.> About SDSU

San Diego State University is the oldest and largest higher education institution in the San Diego region. Since it was founded in 1897, the university has grown to offer bachelor's degrees in 81 areas, master's degrees in 72 areas and doctorates in 16 areas. SDSU's more than 34,000 students participate in academic curriculum distinguished by direct contact with faculty and an increasing international emphasis that prepares them for a global future. For more information, visit www.sdsu.edu.

About the Foundation for Enterprise Development

The Foundation for Enterprise Development (FED) (www.fed.org) was established in La Jolla, California, in 1986 by Dr. J. Robert Beyster and focused on education and training of entrepreneurship and employee ownership in US and internationally. In 2002, the FED launched the Beyster Institute (www.beysterinstitute.ucsd.edu) to carry on this important mission, and as of 2004 the Beyster Institute became part of the Rady School of Management at the University of California, San Diego. The FED works with leading universities, other foundations/associations and government agencies to initiate new research, and educational and knowledge sharing programs to promote science and technology innovation through participative employee ownership and free enterprise.