Business Fellows earn top prize for second year in a row, third in five years
DELAND, Fla. — A team of students from Campbell University’s Lundy-Fetterman School of Business placed first among 16 public and private colleges and universities in the national Templeton Business Ethics Case Competition, held virtually on Feb. 18 and hosted by Stetson University.
The victory came on the heels of Campbell’s 2021 first place in the Templeton Ethics Case Competition and followed a previous Campbell University win in 2018.
Laura Care, a junior Trust and Wealth Management major from Henderson, and Caleb Langdon, a junior Economics major from Coats — both members of the Truist Business Fellows Program in Campbell’s business school — took home the $2,000 prize. Their faculty mentor, Dr. Mark Steckbeck, is associate professor of economics and director of the Truist Business Fellows Program.
The teams competed in a 20-minute presentation format, followed by five minutes of questioning. Semifinalists were then chosen from each of the four brackets to compete in shorter eight-minute presentations for the top spot.
The case involved changes in the way the International Code Council (ICC), a non-profit organization that develops building codes that are adopted by many states, promulgates codes and standards for residential buildings necessary to reduce carbon emissions. In an undisclosed agreement with the National Association of Homebuilders, the ICC offered the homebuilding lobby undue influence in the process of establishing building codes and standards. The Campbell team’s argument was that the changes that resulted from the secret agreement were unethical and detrimental to the long-run interests of homebuyers and the global community.
“The Campbell team did an excellent job presenting a compelling, deeply-researched case with a well-thought-out argument, and Laura and Caleb were prepared and professional in their presentation,” said Steckbeck. “Campbell’s third win in five years at the Templeton Ethics Competition against teams including Clemson, Penn State, Elon, Florida State and Georgetown is a testament to the excellence of Campbell University’s Lundy-Fetterman School of Business students.”
Care said, “This experience gave us the opportunity to take a prompt and run with it. Caleb and I were grateful to talk to many ICC stakeholders and gain personal knowledge from those members that you can’t get from reading articles alone.”
Langdon noted, “The Templeton Business Ethics Case Competition was an excellent opportunity to experience collaboration as it should be. I’m incredibly grateful to have won this competition, but I’m even more grateful just to have been able to participate.”
This year marked the sixth time that students from Campbell University’s Lundy-Fetterman School of Business have competed in the Templeton Ethics Competition. In 2021, Business Fellows Caroline Inman, now a senior, and 2021 Campbell graduate Aaron Schnoor took first place at the event, and in 2018, Campbell alumni Dylan Blackburn and Sarah Page were Campbell’s first winning team at the competition.