From basketball court to CEO
S&T Miners build their future
Clothing brand founder. Sports marketer. Financial advisor. Entrepreneur. CEO. These are just a few possible future titles for members of Missouri S&T’s men’s basketball team, who are students of the Kummer College of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development.
In March 2025, the team competed in the NCAA Division II National Tournament for the first time in almost 30 years. These Miners are great on the court, and they’re already laying the groundwork for game-changing business careers.
Michael Onunkwor, a junior in business and management systems from Jefferson City, Missouri, isn’t just dreaming of his future as a business owner — he’s already started. Last year, he created his own clothing brand: Organic Visions. He’s already sold nearly 60 pieces of clothing.
“I want to see if I can implement my sense of style in the fashion community, see how far I can take it and see if it can be made into something big,” Onunkwor says.
Ryan Sroka, a graduate student in the MBA program, wants to become a financial advisor. His parents, who both worked at AT&T for over 30 years and retired in their 50s, sparked his passion.
“It just seemed really cool to me to help another family,” Sroka says. “Because of their financial advisor, my parents were able to retire early and come to every single one of my games.”
Blaise Beauchamp, a graduate student in the MBA program, has a passion for business inspired by his father, who owns a successful tennis court cleaning business in California. He’s considering a career in financial analysis but is interested in entrepreneurship.
“I do have my accounting degree, so I do like financial analysis,” he says. “But you never know.”
Jack Zarr, a junior in business and management systems from St. Louis, is thinking about becoming either a real-estate mogul or a project manager. He has an internship lined up with Byrne & Jones Construction.
“I like construction. I know there’s a lot of opportunity there,” Zarr says. “But I feel like real estate could be a really nice side project and hopefully take over my career in the future.”
Tucker Morris, a first-year student from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, hopes to merge his love of business and sports as a sports marketer or agent. He’s studying information systems and knows it plays a key role in business.
“Being a sports agent always sounded cool, or sports marketing for individual teams,” Morris says.
Adam Rickman, a first-year student from Washington, Missouri, is inspired by his successful father.
“I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of being an entrepreneur,” Rickman says.