Alumnus Rick Callicutt leads bank of North Carolina.

• Position: Alumni NEWS

Leading a life of success and significance--that's what Rick Callicutt, a 1980 alumnus of High Point University, is doing as president and CEO at the Bank of North Carolina (BNC).

Callicutt started his banking career four days after he graduated from HPU with a business administration degree. A native of High Point, he joined a startup banking company in Thomasville, N.C.

The bank began in a small trailer. Today, that same Bank of North Carolina boasts $5 billion in assets, and is one of the most profitable and fastest-growing banks in the Southeast.

As the Chief Executive Officer of both the Bank and its parent company, BNC Bancorp, Callicutt says the focus on entrepreneurialism that HPU instills in its students has set the university--and its graduates--apart from its competition.

"HPU encourages and focuses the curriculum on entrepreneurship and accountability: the qualities most needed to compete as a company and as an individual in today's global economy," says the CEO. "The resources on campus, access to world class professionals, and the exemplary leadership have propelled HPU to 'Best in Class.'"

Some may even see a common theme between the explosive growth of BNC and HPU.

"Dr. Nido Qubein has transformed the university unlike any success story of the last decade," adds Callicutt. "The financial investment in technology, talent and vast campus resources have gained both the community and the university recognition that has bettered the local economy and...