Sharon Smith, Ph.D., the dean of Fordham College of Business Administration, has been named interim dean of the University’s Graduate School of Business Administration effective July 1. Smith, who in 1990 became the first woman dean of a Jesuit business school, is one of a handful of female graduate business school deans across the country. She replaces Ernest Scalberg, Ph.D., who announced his resignation in May to accept a job as dean of the Fisher Graduate School of International Business at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in California. During Smith’s tenure as dean of the undergraduate college, the application pool increased 60 percent. Smith attributes the college’s success to its focus on the two major forces shaping today’s economy: globalization and information technology. The G.L.O.B.E. program – an international undergraduate curriculum that combines business education, cultural understanding and real-world experience in foreign business – continues to be an engine for increased enrollment. The Management of Information and Communications Systems (MICS) degree and the electronic business specialization, also big draws, have been successful in preparing students for the transforming business world.
Under Smith’s leadership, CBA has formed partnerships with NASDAQ and the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) to provide continuing education to financial service professionals and consulting and research opportunities for undergraduates. Smith was instrumental in establishing the University’s B.S./M.B.A. program through which students can receive a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business in five years. As dean of the undergraduate college and interim dean of the graduate school, Smith plans to further develop this synergy between the undergraduate and graduate business programs. She plans to build the graduate school’s global presence and enhance its curriculum to produce graduates whose diverse skills will meet the demands of the ever-changing business world. Fordham’s College of Business Administration, founded in 1920, is ranked among the “best buys” in undergraduate education by U.S. News & World Report. The Graduate School of Business Administration, established in 1969, has been recognized nationally for the quality and innovation of its programs, which prepare graduates for global competition.
