Mays Impacts

Six faculty members have been awarded the designation of Mays Faculty Fellowship effective Sept. 1. These professors receive $15,000 for four years to support their research and supplement their summer salary. The fellowships are based on past research performance and potential for future research opportunities.

This year’s recipients include: Ramona Paetzold, management; Powell Robinson, information and operations management; Arun Sen, information and operations management; Mike Wilkins, accounting; Manjit Yadav, marketing; and Jing Zhou, management.

The college uses part of the general endowment given by Lowry Mays to fund a total of 15 fellowships at one time, says Dr. Ricky Griffin, executive associate dean. Last year, five fellowships were awarded. Next year, up to four more will be given.

Each year, the American Accounting Association (AAA) recognizes outstanding dissertations. Receiving the honor this year is Tanya Benford, an associate professor of accounting.

Benford was recipient of the 2002 AAA Information Systems Section Outstanding Dissertation, which is determined by academics that teach and/or conduct research in the field of accounting information systems.

Doctoral students could nominate their own dissertation or be nominated by a member of their dissertation committee. Benford was nominated by Professor James E. Hunton, the co-chair of her dissertation committee, at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

She will officially receive the award in August at the annual AAA meeting. Benford received her B.A. and M.B.A. from Indiana University and Ph.D. from the University of South Florida.

Texas’ top business leaders now have a chance to voice their opinions about the state of the economy.

Thanks to a partnership between the college’s Real Estate Center (REC) and Compass Bank, businesses are being surveyed about their thoughts for future economic conditions. The survey, called the Business Leaders Confidence Index (BLCI), targets organizations with at least $5 million in sales.

Execs answer questions about sales, profits, hiring, expenditures, interest rate expectations and the state/national economic outlook. Results of the survey are compiled on a quarterly basis.

According to Jim Leigh, an associate professor of marketing, the index provides information to business leaders in Texas, as well as provides good exposure for the college’s REC.

To access results of the survey, visit www.blcindex.com.