Haile/US Bank College of Business announces inaugural Haile Faculty Fellowships

News from NKU...

Wednesday - June 17, 2009
For immediate release...


HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University Haile/US Bank College of Business announced today the recipients of the inaugural Haile Faculty Fellowships.

The fellowships are a result of the landmark Haile/US Bank Foundation $15 million naming gift for the college announced in August 2008. They reward faculty excellence in teaching, research and public engagement. The purpose of the Haile Faculty Fellowship Program is to honor and support faculty excellence in all areas of responsibility by providing fellowships to three tenured faculty members in the college.

"The Haile Faculty Fellowship program will greatly help our college recruit and retain excellent faculty," said Dr. John Beehler, dean of the NKU Haile/US Bank Foundation College of Business. "Our faculty is our lifeblood and the key to attaining even greater levels of excellence in the future."

The fellowships are granted for two academic years to faculty members who hold the title of "Haile Faculty Fellow" and receive a $10,000 stipend annually during that period. At the end of the two-year period, each Haile Faculty Fellow will relinquish the title and the stipend so that three new Haile Faculty Fellows can be named for the succeeding two-year period. Recipients of the Haile Faculty Fellowship are not eligible for consideration in the immediately succeeding round of applications.

"I was very impressed by the quality of the faculty recipients of the inaugural Haile Faculty Fellowships," said Leslie Maloney, Haile/US Bank Foundation senior vice president and program manager for education. "Their credentials are impeccable and their accomplishments are impressive."

The main criterion for awarding these faculty fellowships is quality faculty performance in all areas of responsibility. However, each of the three faculty fellowships has a different overriding criterion: the first in teaching, the second in research and the third in public engagement.

Haile Faculty Fellow for Excellence in Teaching
Dr. Matt Ford, NKU Department of Management, has a stellar record of teaching excellence. He consistently receives very high student evaluations and extremely positive comments from students while maintaining high rigor in his classes. He has received six collegiate teaching awards in his career, including winning the prestigious Sandy Easton Award for Outstanding Teaching three times in the first four years it was given by the college. Dr. Ford was also NKU’s 2007 nominee for the Council on Postsecondary Education Teaching Award. He is known for his enthusiasm in the classroom and for the use of innovative materials which keep the experience real to students while using the latest technology and business media. He was also a finalist for the Haile Faculty Fellow for Excellence in Research Award.

Haile Faculty Fellow for Excellence in Research
Dr. Vincent Owhoso, NKU Department of Accountancy, has an international reputation for cutting-edge research in the field of auditing and accounting. The central theme of Dr. Owhoso's research is the examination of the effectiveness and efficiency of certain audit practices that are intended to reduce the risk of material misstatements during financial statement audits. He has presented his research at top accounting and business conferences throughout the world. He is a prolific author of high-quality research published in the top journals in the field of accounting. He has two articles in the Journal of Accounting Research, which is recognized as an elite journal in the field of accounting. Dr. Owhoso's research is widely cited by authors in top journals and in doctoral dissertations worldwide. The results of his research have a direct impact on the actual practice of auditing.

Haile Faculty Fellow for Excellence in Public Engagement
Dr. Aron Levin, NKU Department of Marketing, has been a model in our region for excellence in public engagement and has been recognized by NKU as one of its most engaged faculty in the university's "Aligning for Public Engagement: Laying the Foundation" publication. Dr. Levin is the founder and director of the Marketing Research Partnership Program (MRPP), which links NKU's marketing research students with six key corporate partner firms in the field of marketing research. The purpose of this partnership is to enhance the students' learning experiences and to assist them in finding professional career opportunities. Over the past eight years, Dr. Levin's students in the Advanced Marketing Research class have provided marketing research studies to over 50 small businesses and not-for-profits who could not afford to pay for commercial marketing research. The market value of these marketing research studies exceeds $500,000. The close connection between the marketing research firms in the region with Dr. Levin's marketing research classes and students has provided a very successful linkage that continually breeds success in education, mentorship, and career opportunities. Dr. Levin is both an excellent teacher and mentor to his students as well as a recognized scholar in the field.

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