IANA Announces Academic Challenge Co-Honorees

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
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The Intermodal Association of North America’s (IANA) 2021 Academic Challenge resulted in a tie; undergraduate teams from the University of Maryland and the University of North Texas shared the win.

The 11th annual competition was held virtually in conjunction with the University of North Florida. Each team was tasked with a case study that focused on creating a supply chain strategy for a fictitious, family-owned footwear company, while considering growth potential, distribution options and strong branding ties to the owners, according to IANA.

University of Maryland team

Participating from the University of Maryland were Dawson Jones, Devin Straight and Steven Ioannidis (pictured with their Advisor, Dr. Thomas Corsi, left).

The University of North Texas (UNT) team members were Seth Williams, Rayann Nasser and Cassandra Keenan (pictured below).

The other competing IANA scholarship schools were California State University Maritime Academy, College of Charleston, Georgia Southern University, SUNY Maritime Academy, the University of North Florida, and the University of Wisconsin at Superior.

University of North Texas team

Judges for the competition were members of IANA’s Board of Directors: Shelli Austin, InTek Freight & Logistics; Rob Cannizzaro, Virginia International Terminals; Doug Hoehn, Milestone Equipment Holdings; Maryclare Kenney, CSX; and Kevin Lhotak, Reliable Transportation Specialists.

“Students participating in this competition have undoubtedly gained valuable skills, such as critical thinking, problem solving, public speaking, developing solutions under time-constrained situations, and team skills,” UNT Assistant Professor of Logistics Suman Niranjan said. “It was an invaluable experience for UNT students.”

“The overall experience of the case competition is highly rewarding and has created an enthusiasm among my students to pursue careers in intermodal transportation,” University of Maryland Professor Thomas Corsi said.

“Once again this year, the participating teams raised the bar with their presentations,” IANA President and CEO Joni Casey said. “We congratulate all of the schools that competed and hope that the students will one day take their places as future leaders of the intermodal industry.”

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