His interest in business and economics began at an early age. By the time he was 18, Christopher Scalzo was hatching ideas, examining investment strategies and conjuring up plans to run his own company.
His first big business plan was a home run—financing for a tool and die company. Others followed. As news of his business and entrepreneurial savvy spread, friends and colleagues turned to him for advice about finances and marketing.
He set out to teach others the tools of his trade, consulting and working for small and large companies, handling budgeting and forecasting financials.
It was in graduate school 10 years later when a professor first turned him on to the idea of teaching. He started out with a college investment course part-time.
There was something about being in the classroom—a gratifying feeling of fueling students’ desire to learn that was incredibly rewarding. He never left.
He went back to school to earn his doctorate degree and has spent the last 20 years working in academia, 15 of them at Morrisville State College, where he is an associate professor of business and entrepreneurship.
Today, Scalzo’s lessons are going beyond the classroom. They are global.
His varied experiences in the corporate world and the classroom have been a stepping stone for opportunities that have helped companies overseas and farmers in third-world countries.
Most recently, he traveled to Nanjing, China, where he spent four weeks teaching macroeconomics at Nanjing Institute of Industry and Technology (NIIT), through an international accredited agreement between SUNY Cobleskill and Chinese higher education institutions.
His cross-cultural experiences have been valuable teaching tools that have successfully engaged his students throughout the years.
In all, Scalzo has made five trips abroad, four of which have been purely volunteer during his summer break from Morrisville State College.
“Teaching in other countries and immersing myself in other cultures where people could benefit from my skillset has been very rewarding,” Scalzo said.
His journeys have taken him to Lebanon, where he spent three weeks assisting organic food producers with a business model and conducting financial analysis, through an overseas cooperative assistance program.
In Honduras, he worked on financial and cost analysis with farmers on 18 dairy farms. On that trip he was recognized with a President’s Volunteer Service Award, a prestigious national honor that lauds volunteer service.
During a trip to Nairobi, Kenya, he helped a soy and maize-producing company upgrade its accounting system and enhance its operations. While he was there, he also presented a seminar on entrepreneurship and spoke about future trends affecting business, business research methods and accounting and financial analysis at Africa Nazarene University.
Living and working in other countries offered Scalzo the opportunity to sample new foods, learn about the rich cultures of other countries and broaden his life experience.
Each trip enhanced his classroom teaching.
“Dr. Scalzo’s passion for travel combined with his personal philosophy of service to other serves as the catalyst for his trips abroad,” said Linda Turner, associate professor of business administration at MSC. “His contributions have been both personally and professionally enriching and rewarding for a wide variety of constituencies.”
“First-hand experiences help my students gain a better understanding of other cultures and I am a more enlightened individual and a better teacher,” Scalzo said.
A professor once told him: “emulate those professors who have done a great job teaching and tweak your courses throughout your teaching career to keep them interesting,” Scalzo recalled.
That advice has been a driving force in his career.
In the classroom, Scalzo strives to engage students through interactive lessons.
A favorite course he teaches, Creating the Business Venture, offers students an opportunity to test their skills and creativity developing a business plan and consulting for an outside client.
“Chris is innovative in the classroom and comfortable trying new experiential lessons,” said colleague Al Muss. “For example, he builds model cars in the Operations and Production Management class to give students experience with production constraints and has implemented “quiz by clickers” in classes to give students instant feedback.”
Scalzo draws his motivation from students’ ambition on a daily basis. “I am moved by their enthusiasm, their tenacity and eagerness to learn,” he said. “There is no better feeling than making a contribution to someone’s education and future.”
He knows he has made his mark when they stay in touch after they graduate.
“When they stop by to tell me they are still utilizing something I taught them in the classroom, that is when I know I have done my job well,” he said.
Even after they graduate, he is always available to offer guidance and advice. An important lesson he instills in students is to keep learning; whether it is through gaining a new skill, obtaining an additional degree, professional development or volunteering in the community.
And he follows his own advice.
Scalzo is a member of the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE), an organization dedicated to advancing entrepreneurship, and is a board member for Dollars for Scholars in North Syracuse, NY, also serving on its finance committee. He and his family have run a smoothie business in New York State for the past four years.
Looking back on his career, Scalzo said there isn’t anything he would do differently.
“There is nothing more gratifying than expanding students’ knowledge and supporting their development,” he said. “The work of a teacher is challenging, but the rewards are endless.”
