YSU Business Students Selected as 2024 Beeghly Fellows

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Jan Harter and Nathan Heinly, business students from Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration, were selected as the John D. Beeghly Fellows for the 2024 summer semester.

“The generous gift made by the John D. Beeghly Family is an important investment in our business students,” said Kelly L. Wilkinson, dean of the Williamson College of Business Administration. “The gift provides our students with career-related experiences in regional businesses, so it is a collaborative win-win for both the WCBA students and the Mahoning Valley.”

The John D. Beeghly Fellows program provides students with a paid fellowship working with the Ohio Small Business Development Center, Export Assistance Network and the APEX Accelerator at YSU. Projects include domestic and international market research, financial modeling, export readiness studies, business viability analysis, cash flow projections, sales forecasting, marketing and social media strategies, research on government contracting opportunities, marketing capability statements and outreach for government contracting efforts. 

Students gain career-related work experience to position themselves in the job market upon graduation.

Harter, a business economics major who will graduate in spring 2026, is from Ulm, Germany. He wants to establish a career in corporate strategy consulting, leveraging his analytical skills and understanding of economic principles to drive impactful business decisions. 

Through the Beeghly Fellowship and academic projects, Harter has gained experience working directly with clients. It enabled him to assist businesses in achieving their goals. 

Heinly, a business finance major who will graduate in spring 2025, is from Jefferson, Ohio. His participation in the Ohio Procurement Internship Program at YSU earned him the opportunity to be a Beeghly Fellow. 

Heinly aspires to be a professional in the world of finance, government contracting or both. His ultimate goal is to run his own business. Through the Beeghly Fellowship, Heinly has been able to see real-world clients reap the benefits of working alongside the Small Business Development Center. He said he is excited to continue helping small businesses succeed in the commercial and government marketplaces.

The Ohio Small Business Development Center at YSU received a best practice for its service delivery model that integrates the Beeghly Fellows into SBDC services. The ASBDC Accreditation team visiting Ohio stated that the model should be an example to other university-based SBDCs for integrating educational, community and economic development services.

The John D. Beeghly Fellows program is made possible by an endowment established at the YSU Foundation by Beeghly’s wife and children. Beeghly was a lifelong resident and businessman in Youngstown. From 1967 until his death, he served as vice president and director of Standard Slag Co. and Stancorp Inc., a holding company for industrial businesses.

Pictured at top: Nathan Heinly and Jan Harter.

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.