The Helmer Family

Jorge Helmer - ’77, Finance/’84 MBA
Adam Helmer - ’13, Marketing/’18, MBA

Jorge Helmer initially attended college in Wisconsin but found the weather in San Diego to be more to his liking, so he and his future wife, Pam (’77, education), transferred to SDSU. The two married when both were SDSU juniors. 

After graduation, Jorge worked in the tech industry, but found career advancement was “highly dependent on getting an advanced degree.” This prompted his return to SDSU’s College of Business (now the Fowler College of Business) for his MBA, which he earned in 1984. 

The family moved to Silicon Valley in the mid-80’s, though Jorge left the tech industry in 2006 to become the CFO of a private high school in San Jose. His son, Adam, became familiar with San Diego while visiting family there and, like his father, enrolled in SDSU’s business school. 

Adam earned his B.S. in 2013, but his passion for basketball brought him back to SDSU as an MBA student so that he could take a position as a graduate assistant for the Aztec men’s basketball program. 

By 2018, Adam had an MBA and a resume that showcased his sports business acumen, including an NCAA tournament appearance with the Aztecs. He’s currently working for the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun. 

Adam said the most important lesson he learned at SDSU was to trust in himself. “Not everyone understood my desire to work with the Aztecs men’s basketball team,” he said. “But I learned a lot while I was there, and it helped me to live my dream by securing a position with a professional basketball team.” 

Jorge said the most important lessons he learned at SDSU was in the classroom. “The importance of financial and investment analysis I learned there has had a lasting effect on my family,” he said. “I feel very fortunate to have had an opportunity to attend SDSU. It was, and is, an amazing institution for which I will be forever grateful.”