Hopes are high for Robert T. Sumichrast, the new dean of the E. J. Ourso College of Business Administration.
A committee of 14 teachers, students and business leaders interviewed four finalists and sent two to Chancellor Mark Emmert to make the final decision, said Wendy Osborn Luedtke, director of alumni and recruiting relations. Emmert made the decision in May and Sumichrast took over as dean July 1.
Thomas D. Clark Jr., who had been dean since 1996, decided to step down in May 2002 when he became the Edward G. Schlieder Endowed Chair of Information Sciences. Clark will return to the Department of Information Systems and Decision Sciences as a professor, Luedtke said.
The administration began a search for a new candidate in the fall, but no candidates were selected, she said. However, the search in the spring found the four finalists.
William Lane was appointed interim dean of the College of Business during the search for a permanent dean and was also a candidate, he said.
Lane said during the year he was dean, he reopened the pursuit of a new building for the College of Business, which is currently on the Master Plan.
He said Sumichrast is a leader and he has confidence in Sumichrast’s ability to maintain what he has started.
“A dean’s job is primarily external,” Lane said. “A good staff will take care of the internal processes.”
William W. Williams, executive assistant dean of the College of Business, said they went thorough a long and through search process to find a suitable dean and is also confident in Sumichrast’s abilities.
Originally from Chicago and growing up in Northwest Indiana, Sumichrast was previously the associate dean for graduate and international programs at Virginia Tech’s Pamplin College of Business before coming to LSU.
“I wanted to have a job where I could make a difference, be successful and help students,” he said.
He said he started to realize his knack for University administration at Virginia Tech when he began to make improvements in their program.
Barry O’Donnell, associate director of the business MBA program at Virginia Tech, said during Sumichrast’s three years at Virginia Tech, his department moved up in rankings from 78 to 58.
“A lot of that was his new direction,” O’Donnell said. “Prior to his arrival [at Virginia Tech] we were not establishing goals. He set a vision for recognition in the top 50.”
As Sumichrast learned more about LSU, he said he saw a tremendous opportunity for growth.
One problem he sees with the college is a wide-scale problem – the budget.
“The budget is a continuing problem for most of the universities around the country,” Sumichrast said. “This year will not be a good or bad year for the budget at LSU.”
Sumichrast said the budget does not support tenure track for employees, so the college does not have enough professors to teach as many classes as they need.
“This causes students to have fewer choices and higher class sizes,” he said. “The Chancellor and Provost are working hard to improve this situation.”
Sumichrast hopes to look to independent resources like private contributors and alumni to increase the College of Business’ budget.
He said he sees LSU as a vehicle for increasing economic development and making changes the state needs.
One of his goals for the college is to address the needs of the college and make improvements that will attract the highest quality student.
He is avoiding making any programatic decisions until he understands the environment of the University, tests the expertise of the faculty and tests the needs of the local business community.
While no curriculum changes are definite, Sumichrast is considering creating a new or different minor and to get students into the program who will benefit the most from the current programs offered.
Statewide, he said the college needs to help foster excellent jobs within Louisiana where graduates can get a fair salary that can mature into a career path.
“One thing is clear, economic development is very important for the success of the state,” Sumichrast said.
Another one of his goals is to build upon the current strengths of the University, which includes entrepreneurship in the state and a strong group of alumni.
The Ourso College Louisiana Business and Technology Center is ranked first in the nation in average employment growth by client companies and second in average revenue growth by client companies.