Faculty Accomplishments and Highlights

Support for Work from Home Warriors

The Utah State University MBA Program and KSL Podcasts launched a new podcast series, "The Management Minute Home Team". Hosted by Professor Scott Hammond, the podcasts are a part of the “Management Minute” series on KSL, a long-time collaboration between KSL and the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business. Episodes, around 9-10 minutes long,  can be accessed on all major podcast distributors, including Apple, Google, and Spotify. Professor Hammond, who writes and produces the podcast, says, “This is for the COVID-19 outcasts who are now working from home.” The podcast describes practical ideas for building your home team community and increasing your productivity.

Thought Leadership

Marketing Professor Sterling Bone was recognized by the American Marketing Association with the inaugural Responsible Research in Marketing Grand Prize for his research showing that minority and women applicants seeking small business loans receive poorer treatment and more scrutiny from bank lending officers.

Dr. Bone and his co-authors were also invited to present their research to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Done in partnership with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), Bone and his colleagues, which include Jerome Williams of Rutgers University and Glenn Christensen of Brigham Young University, studied 10 years of data on the financial lending landscape for minorities and women.

“Small business financing is a $1.4 trillion market, according to estimates by the CFPB,” according to Bone. “Because of discriminatory customer service, banks are leaving money on the table instead of lending to minority and women small business owners who are very well qualified.”

Quarter Century of Excellence

The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) selected the Huntsman School student chapter as one of the 2020 Award of Excellence Outstanding Student Chapters. This marks 25 consecutive years of the USU chapter earning the Gold Award of Excellence designation, and within those 25 years, the 10th time of being recognized as an Outstanding Student Chapter. In addition to the chapter award, two students also received scholarships from the IMA. Accounting Department Head Chris Skousen, in congratulating Frank Shuman, the faculty advisor for the student chapter, noted that “There is not a finer IMA chapter or advisor in the world! Yet again you have demonstrated what it means to achieve the highest award. Thank you for your consistent dedication to excellence! I am grateful for your example and leadership with our students.” 

 Shuman, who has served as the advisor for the IMA student club for each of the 25 years that the club has received the Gold Award, takes great pride in preparing students for professional success. “Being able to teach incredible students and work with the best IMA officers in the world has made all of the hard work and gray hairs worth it!” For his efforts in the classroom, Shuman was named the School of Accountancy Teacher of the Year in 1994 and 2007, the Huntsman School of Business Undergraduate Faculty Advisor of the Year in 2013 and Undergraduate Faculty Mentor of the Year in 2018. He was also honored at the national level with the 2014 IMA Campus Advocate of the Year.

 Under his leadership and guidance, many students have also received highly selective IMA scholarships. Jacob Smith, an accounting student, noted that “When people ask me why I chose accounting, I respond, ‘one part my dad and two parts Frank Shuman.’ Frank has a talent of noticing individuals and remembering them. He wants his students to succeed.”