Ron Mitchell says his most valuable learning experience at HBS did not take place in the classroom. Rather, it emerged from his work as student government president. "That's where I learned about working with people in a political and professional environment and about my own managerial skills and deficits," says the genial second-year student.

As president of the Student Association (SA), one of Mitchell's primary tasks was to bring concessions - student-run businesses offering goods and services such as stationery supplies and dry cleaning - under the auspices of the SA in a program called "HBS Ventures." Thanks in large part to Mitchell's efforts, revenue from these businesses, now run by hired professionals, goes straight into SA coffers rather than into individuals' hands. "This benefits the entire School community rather than a few entrepreneurial students," explains Mitchell, who notes that HBS Ventures generated more than $80,000 for the SA this academic year. "By subsidizing items like yearbooks, as well as social events and intramurals, those funds cut students' costs dramatically."

During his tenure, Mitchell was admired for his ability to maintain cordial, productive relations between the student government and the HBS administration - relations that can sometimes become strained in a student leader's zealous attempts to serve classmates' interests. Deflecting any praise, Mitchell says, "Dean Clark's openness to all viewpoints, I think, created a real opportunity for partnership between the faculty, staff, and students."

Even as an undergraduate at Harvard, team leadership came naturally to Mitchell. He was a two-time captain of the varsity basketball team, was voted the team's most valuable player, and was the College's all-time leading rebounder (a record that was just broken this spring). Off the court, he shone as well, graduating cum laude in economics.

The key to his success? "Self-confidence," Mitchell smiles. And that, he says, comes from the encouragement he's always received from his family. "My parents were not only the first in their families to finish college and earn master's degrees, but even to attend high school," he says with pride. "They're completely supportive of me."

Indeed, when it came time for a mentor, Mitchell had only to look at the faces around his dinner table. His father, Bert (10th OPM), a 1995 HBS Alumni Achievement Award winner, is the chairman and CEO of Mitchell, Titus & Co., the country's largest minority-controlled CPA firm. One sister, Tracey, is an attorney, and another, Robbin (MBA '92), works for McKinsey & Co.

With his mother, Carole, a social worker, Mitchell shares a dream of developing a community education program for minorities. "Young people need role models who can teach them not only basic academic skills," he says, "but also about what the stock market is, how to get a loan, and what to wear to a job interview. They also need to learn about important historical figures such as Frederick Douglass and Fannie Lou Hamer."

More immediately, however, Mitchell, who has worked at his father's firm as well as at McKinsey & Co., the Anschutz Corporation, and Morgan Stanley, will join Provender Capital Group, LLC, a private equity firm in New York City, as an associate this summer. "The managing partner is an African American, and that's important to me," Mitchell says. "Forming our own enterprises is key to helping minorities get to the next level."

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