Five faculty members have received Athletic Association Professorships endowed by UGA’s Athletic Association.
The professorships were awarded to John Grable, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, department of housing and consumer economics; Robert Grafstein, School of Public and International Affairs, department of political science and associate dean; Gerald Henry, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, department of crop and soil sciences; Harold Mulherin, Terry College of Business, department of banking and finance; and David Shipley, School of Law, former dean and a professor in copyright, administrative law and civil procedure.
The UGA Athletic Association has funded a total of 14 professorships since May 2006, as a demonstration of its commitment to academics.
“We take great pride in funding these professorships,” said Greg McGarity, director of athletics. “Our faculty serve as the backbone of our entire enterprise, and we are fortunate to be able to assist the university in this manner.”
Grable joined UGA in August and is focusing his research on the financial risk tolerance of consumers and developing and testing financial therapy models through the ASPIRE (Acquiring Strategies for Personal Improvement and Relationship Enhancement) Clinic. Specifically, his scholarship looks to find a link between stress management and better financial outcomes for consumers.
Grafstein is an expert in tax policy and Social Security. An associate dean and professor of political science, Grafstein has conducted research and written extensively on such topics as the politics of economic policy and the Social Security program. Most recently, he studied the politics of social security programs in the U.S. and China as well and the FairTax program. He is the author of numerous articles and the books Institutional Realism and Choice-Free Rationality, and he currently is co-editing a book comparing U.S. and Chinese politics.
Affiliated with UGA since 1976, Grafstein has served as an assistant professor, associate professor, professor and head of the department of political science at UGA. In addition, he oversees the Maymester in China Study Abroad Program, a leadership role he has held since 2005.
Henry joined UGA in May. His scholarship focuses on environmental turfgrass science with an emphasis on plant/pest/environment interactions. Henry specifically studies physiology, ecology, weed science, pathology, fertility and management, and he has dedicated his research to providing support for golf course, home lawn and athletic field turf management. He recently received a three-year grant from the U.S. Golf Association to examine management impacts on carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions of golf courses and a two-year grant from the Georgia Golf Environmental Foundation to identify the physiological response of Bermuda grass to a soil moisture gradient.
Mulherin’s research interests are in mergers and acquisitions, organization of markets, corporate governance and corporate control. On the faculty in the Terry College since 2006, he was a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar in mergers and acquisitions in Italy, and he has served as co-editor of the Journal of Corporate Finance since 1998.
Prior to joining the Terry College, Mulherin served in academic positions at Clemson University, Dartmouth College, Pennsylvania State University and Claremont McKenna College. He has held corporate positions at the Getty Oil Co., the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Shipley joined the Georgia Law faculty as dean and professor of law in July 1998. He led the school through the completion of a strategic planning process, a $3.2 million renovation of several classrooms and the law library’s Carl E. Sanders Reading Room, a school-wide technology upgrade, the creation of the director of advocacy position and the establishment of a new clinic. Also under his leadership, there was a steady improvement of incoming student credentials.
In 2010, he was named the UGA faculty athletics representative to the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the Southeastern Conference. His responsibilities include working with the Athletic Association to support the academic progress and success of UGA’s student-athletes, serving as secretary to the Athletic Association’s board of directors and monitoring compliance with NCAA rules and regulations.
Prior to joining the faculty at UGA, Shipley was dean and professor at the University of Kentucky College of Law (1993-98); dean, director of the Law Center and professor at the University of Mississippi School of Law (1990-93); and associate dean for administrative affairs and professor at the University of South Carolina School of Law (1989-90). Additionally, he has served a visiting professor at William & Mary (1983-84) and Ohio State University (1986-87).
He practiced law with Tillinghast, Collins & Graham for two years in Providence, R.I. Shipley earned his bachelor’s degree in history from Oberlin College and his law degree from the University of Chicago, where he was executive editor of the University of Chicago Law Review.
