SUNY Oswego accounting major Samisha Élysée will be among the first to graduate with the entrepreneurship minor launched in 2019, as she prepares for an ambitious future.
Élysée’s tenure at Oswego has been distinguished by her deep commitment to social change and cultural celebration, earning her the Newman Civic Fellowship, a prestigious national honor awarded by Campus Compact.
Throughout her academic career, she has benefited from the support of the Oswego faculty and invaluable advice on business management and financial strategies, crucial to her startup, Shea Élysée, LLC.
“Almost every class has helped me,” Élysée said. “There are some preconceived notions about accounting, but it’s actually pretty fun and opens you to a lot of opportunities that I don’t think would’ve been available to me before. The major and my entrepreneurship minor directly had a hand in my results for my company (Shea Élysée, LLC).“
SUNY Oswego faculty members helped guide Élysée through her academic and business efforts as well.
The professors at Oswego "had a lot of impact on me," Élysée noted. “Some gave me direct guidance on what to do with my business, Shea Élysée. I haven’t forgotten it. Professors Jinpei Wu, Kathleen Locklear, Richard Skolnik, Andrea Pagano, Heather Holcomb, Alicia King, Jennifer Knapp … I appreciate them all.”
As she looks toward graduation, Élysée is not just focusing on her academic accomplishments; she’s implemented a rebrand of her business, Shea Élysée, LLC. The benefits of shea butter, a key natural ingredient with roots in African skincare traditions, have seen increased interest worldwide.
For Élysée, the venture is about more than skincare — it’s a mission-driven effort to empower and celebrate diverse beauty, as well as meet demand at a key moment in a growing market. Her experience founding and scaling her business has been heavily supported by academic learnings from SUNY Oswego, especially through courses that have demystified financial statements and market scaling strategies, making her more confident in her business acumen.
“Looking back, working on Shea Élysée while not taking any of the classes I’ve taken would’ve been extremely hard,” Élysée said. “I’m sure of that now. Learning what I know now, I’m very positive I would’ve been scared of anything having to do with finances, financial statements — knowing what the words ‘scaling up’ mean totally would’ve been a nightmare. But now, I can approach things a lot more calmly in several areas because of the assurance I’ve gotten from studying and assignments I’ve done.”
Élysée’s future plans are fueled by a desire to leverage her entrepreneurial and leadership skills for broader community impact. Reflecting on the potential of her business to contribute to positive representation and economic empowerment, she aims to grow Shea Élysée. With her impending graduation, she stands ready to transform her vision into action, bolstered by the practical and theoretical knowledge acquired through her studies at SUNY Oswego.
Learn more about SUNY Oswego’s accounting major and entrepreneurship minor via these links. Those with questions can email the School of Business at business@oswego.edu.