Campus News

Sumichrast elected to AACSB board that governs and accredits business schools worldwide

Athens, Ga. – Robert T. Sumichrast, dean of the University of Georgia Terry College of Business, was elected to serve on the board of directors of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Sumichrast’s three-year term will begin July 1, 2011.

AACSB’s mission is to advance quality management education worldwide through accreditation, thought leadership and value-added services. It currently accredits 607 collegiate business schools in 38 countries and is governed by an international board of directors. In all, two officers and six board members were elected, along with Sumichrast.

“We congratulate our newest board members and thank them for their dedication and service,” said John J. Fernandes, president and chief executive officer of AACSB International. “Comprised of members from across the world, our 2011-2012 board of directors reflects the wisdom and experience needed to lead management education through these challenging times.”

Sumichrast was appointed dean of the Terry College in 2007. At the time of his appointment, he also was named to the Simon S. Selig Jr. Chair for Economic Growth.From 2003 to 2007, he was dean of the E. J. Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University. Prior to that, he was on the faculty at Virginia Tech from 1984 to 2003.

Sumichrast recently was elected to the board of the Southern Business Administration Association. He also is a member of the AACSB Accreditation Coordination Committee and serves as vice chair of the AACSB Initial Accreditation Committee.

He previously has served on the editorial boards and as a reviewer for numerous academic and industry publications. He is the author of a textbook and dozens of articles about improving operations and the practice of business. He also has served as a consultant for small and large corporations, including Ingersoll-Rand, Burlington Industries, Owens-Corning and Federal Mogul.

A native of Indiana, Sumichrast received a bachelor’s degree in physics from Purdue University in 1979.He earned his doctorate in management science from Clemson University in 1984.

AACSB International, founded in 1916, is an association of more than 1,200 educational institutions, businesses and other organizations in 78 countries and territories. AACSB accreditation is the measure of quality most widely sought by schools of business – less than five percent of business schools worldwide have earned accreditation.

As the premier accrediting body for institutions offering undergraduate, master’s, and doctorate degrees in business and accounting, the association also conducts a wide array of conferences and seminars throughout the world. AACSB’s global headquarters is located in Tampa, Fla., and its Asia headquarters is in Singapore.

For more information about Sumichrast and the UGA Terry College of Business, see http://www.terry.uga.edu/.