In an email sent by the OCU Communications office on Monday, March 21, it was announced that after interviews had been conducted with all semi-finalists for the position, three finalists were advancing in the process of selecting a new business dean for the Meinders School of Business.
The three finalists are Daniel Sem, Russell Evans, and Sri Beldona. All three finalists come from different backgrounds, yet all hold Ph.D. titles and have extensive resumes listing their experience and qualifications. There is a web page dedicated to this search and all three finalists’ CV resumes are listed for viewing.
Daniel Sem currently serves as dean and professor of Business Administration at Concordia University Wisconsin. In Sem’s CV, he states “I have a background at the interface of business, law and technology that uniquely prepares me to facilitate and lead entrepreneurial/educational initiatives.”
Sem received his undergraduate degree in chemistry from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, then a Ph.D. in biochemistry from University of Wisconsin-Madison, his MBA from Marquette University’s Business School, and his J.D. from Marquette University’s Law School.
Sem discussed his changes in career from the private sector to academics and academic administration, and stated in his CV “Recently, my passion has been to grow Concordia’s business school, while training business students to be servant leaders and innovators building or growing their own businesses. I enjoy balancing disruptive innovation with academic rigor in the classroom.”
Russell Evans currently serves as the interim dean and professor of economics for the Meinders School of Business. Evans received his Bachelor’s in economics from Oklahoma State University, and his Ph.D. in economics also from Oklahoma State University. Evans’ experience includes serving as executive director at the Economic Research and Policy Institute, a position in which he still serves. This role requires him to serve as an OCU and Meinders School of Business brand ambassador in the community, among other responsibilities.
Evans is a member of the American Economic Association and the National Association for Business Economics and serves on several committees at OCU such as the Curriculum and Academic Affairs committee with the Meinders School of Business, the Staff and Support Program Prioritization Committee, and the Meinders School of Business Leadership Committee.
In addition to his experience in academics and administration, Evans serves as a partner and co-founder of the Economic Impact Group, LLC. Stated in Evans’ CV, this group “[provides] economic consulting services such as impact analysis and expert witness services.”
Sri Beldona currently serves as a professor at the Satish and Yasmin Gupta College of Business, which is associated with the University of Dallas. Beldona formerly served as the associate dean of the Satish and Yasmin Gupta College of Business, and as stated in Beldona’s CV, responsibilities of that role included “managing the college’s accreditation process, curriculum, domestic and international partnerships, strategic & operational planning, and execution of new projects and programs.”
Beldona received his Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Gulbarga University in India. He received his MBA in marketing from Pune University in India, then his M.S. in international business from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. Beldona also received his Ph.D. in business administration from Temple University.
Beldona has over twenty years of experience in administration and work as a professor in the field of business. As stated in his CV, Beldona is “Entrepreneurially oriented and an engaging communicator focused on working collaboratively with administrators, faculty across academic units, alumni, staff, and with students to ensure student success. [Beldona] Emphasizes, values, and authentically embraces shared governance in decision making for the benefit of faculty and staff.”
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