Alumni and Friends Making an Impact

When asked about her first reaction to receiving a donor-funded scholarship to the University of Dayton, Macy Buck ’25 simply said, “I was so appreciative, and I was determined to use this opportunity to my advantage.”

And she has.

With a mother in advertising and a father in sales, it wasn’t a stretch for Buck to find her passion in the School of Business Administration as a marketing major. When she’s not in classes, she’s pouring her creativity and hard work into running UD’s Flyer Enterprises — a $2.5 million company.

Buck is the first Flyer Enterprises CEO elected as a sophomore. Her path to that leadership position can only be summarized by courage and determination — two qualities that will serve her well throughout life. “Anything is achievable if you are adamant about what you want and are willing to work for it,” she said.

Inspired by a former Flyer Enterprises CEO she met at an admitted student day, Buck knew this was an organization she needed to join. “I was in awe listening to this CEO talk, and I wanted to be her one day,” Buck said.

Before she even moved into her first-year residence hall, Buck landed a job selling bagels at Fly-By, a Flyer Enterprises location in Kennedy Union. From there, she set her sights on leading the merchandising division — an executive board position historically limited to upperclassmen. After pleading her case, the executive board agreed to let her go through the application process — just for the experience. “I wanted to impress them so much that they couldn’t say no,” she said.

And good thing they didn’t. That semester, her second at UD, she secured a new outside vendor and increased merchandise revenues 100% year over year.

Buck feels confident her experiences growing revenues and managing people and projects will help her land a job after graduation, and excel in her chosen profession. “Being able to speak to my experience running a multimillion-dollar company should make me stand out in an interview,” Buck said.

For now, Buck is focused on taking Flyer Enterprises to new heights, and she recognizes that she might not have had that opportunity without her two scholarships — the Sandra Bertoni Schmidt and J. Daniel Schmidt Endowed Scholarship and the Goudreau Family Scholarship for the Student Chief Executive Officer of Flyer Enterprises.

“Scholarship donors aren’t just impacting people financially, but personally as well. When I see people like alumni and donors working to make things better, it makes me want to do the same,” Buck said.

And Buck is using her role as CEO to make her community better. She created a new position within Flyer Enterprises to focus on community outreach and philanthropy. “We form relationships with organizations in need of assistance and encourage our 200 employees to sign up to help,” Buck said. Most recently, Flyer Enterprises donated a percentage of credit card sales to purchase diapers for a hospital in need.

Buck firmly believes donor support makes others want to pay it forward. “It’s the best way I can think of to thank those who have supported me,” she said.