MBA Students Squash Competition and Raise $45,000 in Challenge for Charity

Berkeley MBA students scored big in squash, soccer, and tennis in the annual Challenge 4 Charity (C4C) Sports Weekend April 19 and April 20 at Stanford University.

Nine West Coast business schools competed in physical and mental challenges while raising funds for the Special Olympics.

Berkeley-Haas came in first place in squash, with a team consisting of Garnett Booth, Doug Peck, and Natalie Rudd, all MBA 14; and Ansul Rajgharia, MBA 13.  In addition, the Haas men's soccer team came in second place, and women's tennis placed third. 

Haas also surprised in the battle of the bands, with a strong performance Saturday night by David Haaselhoff and the Four Chord Principles, whose name is a play on the school's four Defining Principles.

The C4C event involves three parts: fundraising, volunteering, and the sports weekend. Throughout the year, MBA students within their respective chapters – including UCLA, Stanford, and Pepperdine – volunteer and launch fundraisers for their designated charities. The Sports Weekend is a fun, competitive culmination of the year’s efforts, with games and activities such as ping pong, cheerleading, trivia bowl, and flag football among 1,300 attendees.

This year, Berkeley MBA students raised $45,000 and worked numerous volunteer hours for the Alameda Point Collaborative (APC), a nonprofit dedicated to providing housing for and aiding the homeless or those at risk of homelessness. Students also held a bowling tournament and refereed at Special Olympics sports events. 

Altogether the nine C4C schools have raised $6.3 million for the Special Olympics and contributed more than 16,000 hours of volunteer service since 1996.