# Kellstadt Graduate School of Business

The Charles H. Kellstadt Graduate School of Business is part of DePaul University's Driehaus College of Business, a business school located in the Chicago Loop, Illinois, United States. The Driehaus College of Business (called the College of Commerce until 2012) was founded in 1912 and is one of the ten oldest business schools in the U.S. The school is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-International.
In 2024, the undergraduate entrepreneurship program at Driehaus was ranked 10th in the nation by the Princeton Review.

## History

DePaul's College of Commerce began offering business classes in January 1913, becoming one of the 10 oldest business schools in the nation and the first at a U.S. Roman Catholic university. The college established a Master of Business Administration program in 1948 and launched the Graduate School of Business. The college, including the Graduate School of Business, moved to its current Chicago location in the DePaul Center, 1 E. Jackson Blvd., in 1993.
In 1971, Commerce established its first center, the Small Business Institute. In 1977, Commerce began offering graduate classes at the university's suburban sites. Commerce established the Center for Market Analysis and Planning through a $1 million gift from the Charles H. Kellstadt Trust in 1982. In 1983, DePaul was awarded a $1 million gift from the Dr. Scholl Foundation to establish an endowed chair in its College of Commerce and Department of Finance. The Center for Business Ethics was launched in 1984. In 1986, Commerce received another $1 million grant from the Kellstadt Foundation to establish the Kellstadt Center for Marketing Analysis and Planning in Administration Center.
In 1988, the five-year Arthur Andersen & Co. Alumni Distinguished Professorship in accountancy and the Touche Ross Distinguished Professorship in accountancy were established.
In 1992, DePaul received a $9 million gift from the Kellstadt Foundation to establish the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, named for Charles H. Kellstadt, former president, chairman and chief executive officer of Sears, Roebuck and Co.
In 1997, Kellstadt launched its first overseas part-time MBA program in Hong Kong, that program terminated in 2005. In 2000, Kellstadt added a part-time MBA program in Bahrain. In 2002, it added another in the Czech Republic through a partnership with the Czech Management Center, and that program terminated in 2009. The program's most recent overseas program was created in Taiwan in 2006 and terminated in 2010.
In 2002, Kellstadt created the Real Estate Center, under the direction of Professor Susanne E. Cannon. In 2006, the center received three gifts in excess of $1 million: $4 million from the Michael J. Horne Foundation to endow the Horne Chair in Real Estate Studies; $2 million from Douglas and Cynthia Crocker to endow the Doug and Cynthia Crocker Director of the Real Estate Center; and $1.5 million from George Ruff to endow the Ruff Chair in Real Estate Studies. In 2007, the MacArthur Foundation awarded the center a grant of $3.5 million to launch a multi-faceted program to save affordable rental housing in the Chicago region.
In 2008, Dean Ray Whittington created the Department of Real Estate, carving it out of the Department of Finance. Professor Susanne E. Cannon was chosen as the first department's first chairperson.
In fall 2008, the college received a $7.5 million gift from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to establish the School of Hospitality Leadership, launched in fall 2009.
In 2012, DePaul alumnus Richard H. Driehaus gave DePaul a $30 million gift to be used to recruit and retain business faculty. DePaul renamed the College of Commerce the Driehaus College of Business. Part of the Driehaus College of Business, the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business retained its name.

## Academics

Driehaus has six divisions: the School of Accountancy and Management Information Systems; the School of Hospitality and Sports Business; and the departments of finance and real estate, management and entrepreneurship, marketing and economics.

### Undergraduate Programs

Students can choose from among 15 Bachelor of Science in Business degree programs.
A revised Bachelor of Science in Business core curriculum debuted in fall 2022. Entrepreneurial thinking, technology and social good are the cornerstones of the new core curriculum. As part of the core curriculum, all students participate in the Driehaus Cup: a fast-paced pitch competition judged by industry experts with thousands of dollars in scholarship money at stake. In October 2023, the Mid-American Business Deans' Association honored the Driehaus Cup with its curricular innovation award.

### Graduate Programs

Kellstadt offers both a Master of Business Administration degree, with multiple options including a full-time program, a part-time program in the evenings, and a part-time program on the weekends. Students may choose from among 15 MBA concentrations.
Kellstadt also offers a Doctorate in Business Administration program. Designed as a bridge between academia and industry, the DBA program is tailored to senior professionals and those who wish to transition to academia.
Additionally, Kellstadt offers 11 specialized master's degrees that provide in-depth knowledge in a particular area of business.
Multiple combined degree programs allow students to combine an MBA with an MS program; an MS program with an undergraduate degree; or an MBA with another degree from DePaul, such as a JD or an MFA.
In collaboration with the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance, Kellstadt offers three degree programs in Bahrain: an MBA program and master's programs in finance and human resources. This partnership was launched in 2001, and the MBA program was the first in the Gulf region to be taught solely by U.S.-based faculty.

### Executive Education

The Hay Center for Leadership Development offers a wide range of programs that advance talent development for organizations and individuals. The center offers custom-built programs for organizations who want to develop their talent, cultivate a driven workforce and tackle business challenges.

### Centers and Institutes

Driehaus has 17 specialized centers and institutes that conduct research, host symposia and partner with local, national and international organizations to address issues within various fields. These include:
* Arditti Center for Risk Management
* Business Education in Technology and Analytics (BETA) Hub
* Center for International Business
* Center for Research and Education in Hospitality Leadership
* Center for Sales Leadership
* Chicago Family Business Council
* Coleman Entrepreneurship Center
* Driehaus Center for Behavioral Finance
* Hay Center for Leadership Development
* Institute for Business & Professional Ethics
* Institute for Housing Studies
* John L. Keeley Jr. Center for Financial Services
* Kellstadt Career Management Center
* Kellstadt Marketing Center
* Marriott Foundation Center for Student Development and Engagement
* Real Estate Center
* Women in Entrepreneurship Institute

## Rankings and Recognition
### Undergraduate

In 2024, the undergraduate entrepreneurship program at Driehaus was ranked 10th in the nation by the Princeton Review.

### Graduate

In 2024, the Kellstadt MBA program was ranked among the top 30 MBA programs for entrepreneurs in the world. The highly selective list was compiled by Poets&Quants, a leading publication covering graduate business education.
In 2024, the Princeton Review ranked Kellstadt's graduate entrepreneurship programs as 20th in the nation and 5th in the Midwest. Kellstadt was the only school from Illinois to appear on the list.
In 2024, Fortune ranked Kellstadt's MBA program among the Top 50 producers of c-suite executives at Fortune 1000 companies.
In 2024, Intelligent.com, a data-driven higher education journalism website, ranked the master's in business analytics program at Kellstadt among the nine best in the nation.

### Centers and Institutes

In 2023, the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center earned the Nasdaq Center of Entrepreneurial Excellence Award from the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers, which counts over 200 university entrepreneurship centers from more than 19 countries among its members. The award is given annually to the top entrepreneurship center among universities that enroll more than 5,000 students.

## Notable alumni

* Bushra Amiwala, first Gen Z elected official in the United States
* Richard Driehaus, CEO, Driehaus Capital Management
* Leticia Hudsons, Founder/Owner, Alma Coffee
* Laura Kohl, Global Chief Information Officer, Morningstar
* Marianne Markowitz, President and CEO, First Women's Bank
* Sean McWeeney, FBI agent and founder, Corporate Risk International
* Dan Michelson, Founder and CEO, InCommon
* Malik T. Murray, Senior Vice President, Ariel Investments and Trustee, DePaul University
* Paula Price, independent board director for Accenture, Warner Bros. Discovery, Mondelez International, and Bristol Myers Squibb
* Nicole Robinson, CEO, YWCA Metropolitan Chicago
* Jared Smith, founder, RXBar

## Notable faculty

* Kelly Richmond Pope, forensic accountant, author and award-winning documentary filmmaker
* Sandra Shelton, former KPMG Neil F. Casson Endowed Professor and PhD Project co-founder
* Alyssa F. Westring, Vincent de Paul Associate Professor of Management and author, Parents Who Lead: The Leadership Approach You Need to Parent with Purpose, Fuel Your Career, and Create a Richer Life
* Yujong Hwang, professor of accountancy and MIS and top computer science researcher worldwide
* Belverd Needles, professor emeritus and globally recognized expert in international financial reporting, accounting education and auditing