When Denise Call was considering joining Weber State University’s new business development team, she recognized something familiar in the institution: an entrepreneurial mindset. 

As the founder and executive director of a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering connections between higher education, defense and industry, she has encountered that mindset within her business partners, her clients, and within herself. 

The new structure within WSU’s Division of Online & Continuing Education allows that mindset to flourish, she said.

“What I see is an intentional and focused effort to build relationships with individual companies,” she said. 

Along with Holly Suisse, she’ll be spearheading that effort — building the doorways, pathways and bridges that lead to meaningful, long-lasting relationships. 

Denise’s focus will be on those entities and businesses that are part of the aerospace and defense industries. She comes to the role with plenty of experience, both through her nonprofit work and her previous role shepherding accelerator projects and startup connections with the Department of Defense. 

That translates to her ability to hit the ground running, building upon relationships she’s already formed and seeking out new ones with a level of familiarity that will facilitate meaningful conversations more quickly. 

Regardless of the content of those conversations, Denise places her emphasis on relationships first. Educational offerings, training needs and business operations all change with time, but a strong connection can weather all of those changes, she said. 

“I believe every business relationship, or every professional relationship, has to build its foundation on a personal level,” she said. 

Through her work in aerospace and defense, she encountered the calling and the patriotism that are common qualities of the people in those sectors. She’s excited to maintain those relationships and grow new ones. 

As for what WSU, aerospace and defense can create together, the future is wide open, she said. 

“You choose the fabric, we’ll make the suit.”