College of Business Bloomsburg University -News

Preliminary plans for the renovation and addition of Sutliff Hall have been completed. The plans, which are a part of feasibility study subject to many possible changes, call for a third floor addition to the building, as well as a new entrance on the campus side of the building. The plans take into account the need for additional space for special needs rooms, such as a financial trading room and the need for more student interaction. Total construction costs are estimated at more than $9 million. Design and contingency fees, and furnishings will substantially add to the final cost. The timeline is difficult to estimate, but the construction schedule could be moved ahead if BU is able to raise a substantial amount of money toward the project through contributions by individuals and organizations. Fundraising for the project will be a part of a major University capital campaign in the future. The architects for the preliminary plans were Robert Lack Architecture & Design, Inc. from Lewisburg, PA

Jessica Bosler, a senior accounting major from Harleysville, is the first recipient of the $1,000 Terry and JoAnn Ziegler Scholarship. Bosler, center, is shown with David Martin, dean of the College of Business, at left, and JoAnn and Terry Ziegler, who graduated from Bloomsburg in 1977 and 1976 respectively.

Supply Chain Management Talk Given

A Fulbright scholar gave a talk on "Supply Chain Management, Profitability and Regional Economic Growth" on Thursday, Jan. 17, from 10 a.m. to noon in the Kehr Union, Multipurpose Room A. The talk was given by Ik-Whan Kwon, professor of decision sciences and director of the Consortium for Supply Chain Management at Saint Louis University.

Students in legal studies courses at BU had the opportunity to spend three days in Washington, D.C. in November with faculty member Mark L. Usry, Associate Professor of Legal Studies. Students received briefings at the following organizations: The World Bank, International Monetary Fund, European Union Delegation to the US, Organization of American States, U.S. Dept of Commerce - International Trade Administration, US Customs and Border Protection, US Small Business Administration, the Assistant US Trade Representative, AFL-CIO and lunch and tour of the Hillwood Museum, the former home of Marjorie Merriweather Post, sole heiress to the General Foods Fortune

BIS Faculty Member Defends Dissertation

Loreen Powell, Assistant Professor of Business Information Systems, has successfully defended her doctoral dissertation at Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Professor Powell will be awarded a Ph.D. in Information Systems. Shown in the photo is Dennis Gehris, Department Chairperson (l) and Prof. Powell (r).

Dr. A. Rao Korukonda, Professor of of Computer & Information Science, has been invited to deliver a keynote address entitled, "Management of Technology vis-à-Vis Technology of Management: An Exploration of Contemporary Themes in Emerging Economies" at the Fifth AIMS International Conference on Management to be held in Hyderabad this December.

Dr. John Olivo, Professor of Business Education and Business Information Systems, has been selected as the 2007 Senior College/University Educator-of-the-Year by the Eastern Business Education Association. The award was presented at the 110th EBEA Annual Convention held October 18-21, 2007 in Baltimore, Maryland.

Finance Students Visit NYC

Student members of the Financial Management Association visited the financial district in New York City in October. Jonathan Ohn, Associate Professor of Finance, accompanied the group.

Dr. V.H. Manek Kirpalani, Associate Professor of Marketing, has learned that the International Business Review, the official journal of the European International Business Academy, has announced that the article "Born Globals: How to Reach New Business Space Rapidly" Volume 13, Issue 5, October 2004, 555-571 by himself and M. Gabrielsson is the second most downloaded article from their journal. The European International Business Academy is one of the two major Academies in the international business discipline

Dr. Darrin Kass, Associate Professor of Management, has been named the MBA Coordinator beginning with the Spring 2008 semester. Dr. Kass's objectives will be to develop continued enrollment growth in the MBA program, restructure course offerings, and develop leadership opportunities for our students. Dr. Kass replaces Dr. A. Blair Staley, Associate Professor Accounting. While MBA Coordinator, Dr. Staley has stabilized our enrollment and course offerings, insured that our students meet our quality standards, put in place the Iliad leadership Assessment Center, developed a well-functioning MBA student organization, developed the first Mt. Katahdin MBA student leadership development program (LATE) in conjunction with Quest, and brought credibility to the graduate community on-campus.

Management Faculty Publish Articles

John Okpara, Associate Professor of Management, authored an article entitled "The Effect of Culture on Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment: A Study of Information System Managers in Nigeria" that was published in the Journal of African Business, Vol.8, No.1, pp.113-130, 2007. He and Pamela Wynn, Professor of Management, coauthored another article entitled "Determinants of Small Business Growth Constraints in a Sub-Saharan African Economy" that was published in the SAM Advanced Management Journal, Vol. 72, No. 2, pp. 24-35.

Accounting Major Nathalie Page Awarded Scholarship

Sophomore accounting major Natalie Page, 19, of Bloomsburg, has been selected to receive $3,000 from the Shuman/Robbins Scholarship Fund for the 2007-2008 academic year. This award is granted to a student who lives locally, and has completed at least one year at a university while maintaining good academic standing. During her freshman year, Page attained Dean's List status, participated in the BU Dance Ensemble and Dance Team, and became a member of Delta Epsilon Beta Sorority. She works part-time in the athletics department at B.U

Management Faculty Member Serves as Commencement Speaker

Dr. Joan Benek-Rivera, Associate Professor of Management and Department Chairperson, was the commencement speaker at the Spring 2007 undergraduate commencement for the Colleges of Business and Professional Studies that was held on Saturday, May 12, 2007.

Forty (40) students were inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, an honor society serving business programs accredited by AACSB International, on Friday, May 4, 2007. Beta Gamma Sigma is the highest recognition a business student anywhere in the world can receive. In addition, Joseph A. Rado, Class of ’63 and President of CEO World Electronics, was inducted as an honorary member. MBA students inducted were Harold Kropp and Oinye Oian. Seniors indicted were Carissa Anthony, Brian Babilon, Shannon M. Balog, Richard Thomas Banks, Bethany Brensinger, Joshua E. Dinko, Justin D. Leffler, Ross Scott Muench, and Jeffrey Scheier. Juniors indicted were Richard Antrom, Whitney Beal, James Britt, Amanda Brooks, Justin Brown, Shannon Brown, Eric S. Ewing, Joshua R. Faith, Mark Gallagher, Nicola Gelso, Nora Gibbons, Danielle Lomasson, Daniel Moon, Jessica N. Motto, Philip Nagele, Jonathan Ochs, Jennifer Marie Serembus, Ryan C. Shank, Scott James Sienkiewicz, Aaron B. Stagliano, Myron D. Swartzentruber, and Keri Leigh Tenio. Dr. Darrin Kass serves as faculty advisor.

Pamela Wynn and Steven Si, Professors of Management, authored an article entitled "Rights and Responsibilities: A Comparison between Russian and Chinese Workers," which was recently published in the International Journal of Effective Management.

Steven Si, Professor of Management, will be invited to serve on the Editorial Board of Journal of Business Research (2007-2009). JBR is a reputable SSCI management and business journal listed in the SSCI for many years. In return for Dr. Si's work, his name with Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania will be indicated on each issue of the journal from 2007-2009.

John O. Okpara, Associate Professor of Management, edited a book titled "Management and Economic Development in Sub-Saharan Africa: Theoretical and Applied Perspectives". The book was published in April 2007. He also contributed three chapters in volume. He also presented a paper titled "Causes of Small Business Failure in a Developing Economy: An Exploratory Study of Small Scale Enterprises in Nigeria" at the 2007 International Conference of the Society for Advancement of Management in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was a discussant for two papers in international business and strategic human resource management.

Accounting Faculty Members Present Paper

Dennis B.K. Hwang, Professor of Accounting, A. Blair Staley, Associate Professor of Accounting and MBA Program Coordinator, and their colleagues, Dr. Ying Te Chen and Dr. Jyh-Shan Lan of Providence University (Taiwan) presented a paper "The Impact of Culture on Whistle-blowing and Ethics: A Pilot Study of Taiwan and Implications for U.S. Firms Doing Business in a Chinese Cultural Environment" at the 2007 American Accounting Association Mid-Atlantic Regional Meeting, April 19 – 21, 2007 Parsippany, New Jersey.

Accounting Faculty on Panel

A. Blair Staley, Associate Professor of Accounting and MBA Program Coordinator, and Wilmer D. Leinbach, Instructor of Accounting, presented a panel session "Some Attributes Considered in Hiring Executive Level Accounting Personnel: Implications for Educators" also at the 2007 American Accounting Association Mid-Atlantic Regional Meeting, April 19 – 21, 2007 Parsippany, New Jersey.

Ruhul Amin, Professor of Management, received the Best Paper Award at the 2007 International Business & Economics Conference held in Mexico during March 26-30, 2007. His paper, coauthored by Sharmistha Banerjee, was entitled "Constraints and Contingencies of the Small Business: A Comparative Perspective" and will be published in the International Business and Economics Research Journal.

BE & BIS Faculty Member Presents Paper

Dennis Gehris, Professor of Business Education & Business Information Systems, presented a paper entitled "Employer’s Support of the Use of E-portfolios by Information Systems Job Applicants" at the Organizational Systems Research Association Conference in San Diego, California, March 15-16. The paper was coauthored by Albert Fundaburk, Assistant Professor of Business Education & Business Information Systems.

A. Blair Staley, Associate Professor of Accounting and MBA Program Coordinator, presented "From CSI to the Classroom: An Introduction to Computer Forensics and Fraud Examination" at Bloomsburg High School on March 9, 2007 and at Mahanoy Area High School on March 23, 2007.

Accounting Faculty Present Paper

William E. Bealing, Jr., Professor of Accounting, Charles J. Russo, Associate Professor of Accounting, A. Blair Staley, Associate professor of Accounting and MBA Program Coordinator, and Richard L. Baker, Professor of Accounting, presented a paper "A Short Form of the Keirsey Temperament Sorter to Predict Success in an Introductory Accounting Course" on March 28, 2007 at the Northeast Decision Sciences Institute 2007 annual meeting, Baltimore, Maryland.

Finance Professor Chairs Session and Presents Article

Jonathan Ohn, Associate Professor of Finance and Legal Studies, organized and chaired a session "Local Labor and Health Outcome" at the Eastern Economic Association meeting in New York City. He also presented a paper, "Aggregate Unemployment vs Unemployment Duration as a Measure of Labor Market Condition."

COB Student Participates in Harrisburg Internship

College of Business student Shane Langan recently participated in The Harrisburg Internship Semester, during which the 100th anniversary of the state Capitol was celebrated. His impressions on the internship program and centennial celebration were included in a newsletter placed in a time capsule that will be opened in 100 years. A senior business administration major from Archbald, Langan was chosen for one of the 14 positions in the competitive internship program. He worked for the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole in the office of the chief counsel, Victoria Madden, who was Langan's sponsor for the semester.

Dean Martin Publishes Articles

David G. Martin, Dean

Dean David G. Martin has two recent publications. He coauthored an article with Thomas K. Ross (East Carolina University) and Fevzi Akinci (Washington State University), entitled "Analyzing the Efficacy of Physician Practice Acquisition Using Real Option Theory" in the Summer 2006 issue of Journal of Health Care Finance. In addition he has written an article entitled "A National Dialogue: The Secretary of Education's Commission on the Future of Higher Education" that currently appears on the AACSB Assessment webpage http://www.aacsb.edu/resource_centers/assessment/. .

Sherry Eyer, a long-time College of Business staff member, has announced her retirement effective April 28, 2007. Sherry is responsible for the Departments of Computer and Information Systems and Finance and Legal Studies. We wish Sherry a happy retirement!

John Grandzol, professor of management, and Christian Grandzol, instructor of management, recently published "Best Practices in Online Business Education" in the International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning (June 2006), a refereed, open access e-journal that aims to disseminate research, theory, and best practices in open and distance learning worldwide. This work has now been reprinted in FormaMente, an international research journal on the digital future and the official journal of GUIDE, the Association of the Global Universities in Distance Education. The article, based on review of over 70 reports and studies, organizes best online practices into course design and delivery, student services, and Administration categories.

The College of Business has initiated the use of “Careerbeam,” a state-of-the-art online tool that provides career assessments, resume and cover letter development tools, job search strategies, and employment research databases. It will be used in selected classes and will be available to all students and alumni. The web address to access Careerbeam by College of Business students and alumni is http://www.careerbeam.com/Bloomsburgreg.asp.

Morry Ghingold, Associate Professor of Marketing, with co-authors Dr. Zafar U. Ahmed and Zainurin Dahari have had their paper "Malaysian Shopping Mall Behavior: An Exploratory Study," accepted for publication by the Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics. The paper is expected to be published in the final edition of 2007 or the first edition of 2008.

Management Faculty Publish Article

Larry Kleiman, Professor of Management, and Darrin Kass, Associate Professor of Management, published an article entitled "Giving MBA Programs the Third Degree" that appears in the February 2007 issue of the Journal of Management Education, 31, 1, pp. 81-103.

Jonathan Ohn, Associate Professor of Finance and Legal Studies, has co-authored an article, "Another Look at the Relationship between Socioeconomic Factors and the Black-White Health Benefit Inequality," with Lauren McMahon, and Tony Carter, that appears in the Journal of Hospital Marketing & Public Relations, Volume 17, No 1, 2006.

This logo was recently developed for the College of Business. Logos were also developed for the Colleges of Liberal Arts, Professional Studies, and Science and Technology.

CIS Faculty Member Active in Organizing Conferences

Istvan Molnar, Associate Professor Computer and Information Systems, will be assisting in the development of several conferences in the near future. One conference is the "First Asia International Conference on Modeling & Simulation" to be held in March 27-30, 2007 in Phuket, Thailand and the other conference is the "Simulation and Industry and Services" Conference in Belgium.

The MBA Student Association prepared a dinner for residents of the Ronald McDonald House at the Geisinger Clinic in Danville, PA on Saturday, October 21, 2006. Pictured in the photo at the left are (from left to right): Professor Barbara Martin, Dean David Martin, and MBA students Rehana Kundawala, Buddy Kechiche, Laura McCay, Edward Pawlak, Shirley Chen, and Yue Rong .

Business owners, managers, employees, and shoppers in downtown Bloomsburg will be polled this month to gather ideas about what might be done to maintain and improve the central business district. The project is being conducted by Bloomsburg University students under the direction of William Neese, Associate Professor of Marketing. The information gathered should prove useful to existing businesses while identifying possible complementary new businesses. The research is also required as part of a grant application to the PA Department of Community and Economic Development that could help fund operations of Downtown Bloomsburg, Inc. for up to four years.

Dr. Yang Xia and Dr. Morry Ghingold, Associate Professors of Marketing, recently published an article titled "Spousal Influence in Singaporean Family Purchase Decision-Making Process: A Cross-Cultural Comparison" in the Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics. This academic journal is the only journal to focus exclusively on marketing and logistics in the Asia Pacific Region. It is also one of the academic journals published by the Emerald Group Publishing that have been subscribed by over 1600 institutions and organizations, including 96 of the top 100 business schools and 58% of Fortune 500 companies.

Beta Gamma Sigma, the business honor society recognized by AACSB International, has achieved Premier status for the 2005-2006 academic year. This designation is awarded to chapters that value academic excellence and possess faculty officers who work diligently to enhance Beta Gamma Sigma’s stature on campus.

Kellen Brown, an Accounting major who is enrolled in the Fraud Examination Career Concentration, is a recipient of the Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship through the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) Foundation. ACFE Foundation scholarships are $1,000 and include a one-year ACFE Student Associate membership. Scholarships are paid directly to the student’s university.

The Bloomsburg University chapter of Financial Management Association (FMA) has earned the Superior Chapter Designation for the 2005-2006 academic year. This highly coveted award is given to fewer than five percent of FMA chapters. The Bloomsburg FMA chapter, in order to receive this prestigious designation, had to meet a number of specific criteria, demonstrate exemplary chapter management, and excel in providing members program activities. Achieving this honor requires a high level of effort and commitment from students and faculty. FMA indicates that the contributions of the students and faculty at Bloomsburg University are exemplary. Dr. Victoria Geyfman, Assistant Professor of Finance, serves as chapter advisor.

Four Students Pass Certification Exam in Human Resources

During the Spring 2006 semester, Professor Lawrence Kleiman facilitated a student study group to help them prepare for the professional certification exam in Human Resources. Six students subsequently took the exam. The following four students passed the exam: Jennifer Perrot, Jeff Carroll, Amber Dunkelberger, and Dan Snyder.

BIS Major Receives First Place PBL Award

Eric Welkom, a Business Information Systems major, was awarded the 1^st place Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) Award in Telecommunications at the Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA-PBL) National Leadership Conference! The conference was held June 24-27, 2006 in Nashville, Tennessee. Congratulations, Eric!

David G. Martin has been selected to serve as the dean of the College of Business. Currently dean of the College of Business at Alfred University, Martin was a faculty member at Bloomsburg from 1992 to 2001. At Bloomsburg he was an Associate Professor of Finance and Business Law, served as chair of that department, and served as MBA Coordinator. His experience also includes serving as Director of The William G. McGowan School of Business and Professor of Finance at King's College from 2001 to 2004. Martin will begin his duties at Bloomsburg on June 12.

"I want to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Dennis Gehris for his outstanding service as the Interim Dean of the College of Business for the past year," said Provost James Mackin. "Dr. Gehris will now move back into his role as a faculty member and the AACSB coordinator for the College of Business.

Martin earned his Ph.D. in finance at St. Louis University, a Masters in Business Administration at Western Illinois University and a Bachelor of Arts in history at C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University.

Top Honor Graduate

Courtney Leigh Shirley, an Accounting major from Bloomsburg, was the top honor College of Business graduate for Spring 2006. Courtney graduated Summa Cum Laude at commencement ceremonies held on May 13 at Redman Stadium.

Fifty-Nine students were installed into Beta Gamma Sigma at the first installation program conducted by Bloomsburg University's new BGS chapter on May 5, 2006. Beta Gamma Sigma is the only business honor society recognized by AACSB International. Membership is the highest recognition a student can receive in an undergraduate or master's business program accredited by AACSB. Dr. Darrin Kass, Assistant Professor of Management, Monica Favia, Instructor of Marketing, and Dr. A. Blair Staley, Associate Professor of Accounting, serve as chapter advisors.

College of Business Receives Pinnacle Award

The College of Business received the 2006 Microsoft Pinnacle Award for outstanding achievements in business education. The college was honored for enhancing students' learning experiences and promoting innovative applications of technology by integrating Microsoft's Great Plains software into coursework. The college was recognized at the annual customer conference held in Dallas, Texas on March 26, 2006. John Grandzol, Associate Professor of Management, represented the college at the conference.

In December 2004 the Board of Directors of AACSB International ratified the recommendations of the peer review team and the Initial Accreditation Committee to grant AACSB International business accreditation to the undergraduate and graduate business programs at Bloomsburg University!! On January 7, 2005 a letter was received from Doyle Z. Williams, Chairperson of the AACSB Board of Directors, that verifies that accreditation has been officially granted. Click here to view the letter.

“The achievement of AACSB accreditation is one of the most sought after quality indicators of any university or college that offers business programs,” said BU President Jessica Kozloff. “Accreditation is a clear and nationally recognized indicator of an institution’s commitment to quality. We should look upon this as a university-wide achievement. It shows that BU is a place that not only aspires to excellence, but can demonstrate that it has achieved it.”

Less than 15% of business schools world-wide have achieved AACSB accreditation. At year’s end, a total of 497 colleges and universities—425 in the U.S. and 72 internationally—had earned this accreditation. Accredited institutions in Pennsylvania include Drexel, Duquesne, LaSalle, Lehigh, Susquehanna and Temple universities and three members of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, Clarion, Indiana and Shippensburg universities.

“Earning AACSB International accreditation of our undergraduate and graduate business programs is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the faculty and staff of the College of Business,” said David Long, former dean of BU’s College of Business. “The accreditation places the Bloomsburg University College of Business among a very select group of colleges and universities that have met the rigorous standards of the AACSB. Our students can take pride in knowing they are being taught by a distinguished group of faculty who are dedicated to continuously improving the education they provide. Earning accreditation demonstrates to all our stakeholders that Bloomsburg continues the pursuit of excellence in all our programs.”

Click on the AACSB logo above or here to view a presentation that explains the meaning of AACSB accreditation.

Click here to view the peer review team's report. For additional AACSB accreditation reports and materials, click here. For more information on AACSB accreditation, see the AACSB-International website.