June 25, 2013. Four Appalachian State University Walker College of Business faculty members and one staff member have received the college’s 2013 Award for Excellence.
The awards are presented annually. Winners receive a monetary prize and a glass statue. The awards are made possible by a contribution from G.A. Sywassink, chairman and CEO of Standard Holding Corporation of Charlotte.
Dr. Ben Powell received the award for teaching. Dr. Rachel S. Shinnar was honored for her research contributions and the award for excellence in service was presented to Dr. Dana Clark. Chris Taylor was honored as the outstanding non-tenure track faculty member, and Donna Lindabury was honored as the outstanding staff member.
Powell is an associate professor in the Department of Management where he teaches entrepreneurship. He was Appalachian’s first tenure-track professor in entrepreneurship and was recently appointed director of the Transportation Insight Center for Entrepreneurship at Appalachian.
A nominator said, “His teaching performance is guided by his sincere interest in creating an effective interactive learning environment for students to engage in problem-solving and critical thinking.”
Prior to joining the faculty at Appalachian in 2007, Powell taught at the University of Alabama for six years. Powell received an MBA from UNC Chapel Hill, a master’s degree in applied economics and managerial science and a Ph.D. in management with an emphasis on strategy from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Research award recipient Rachel S. Shinnar is an associate professor in the Department of Management.
Shinnar’s research focuses on Hispanic immigrants in the North American workplace as well as minority entrepreneurship. Recent works have been published in the Journal of Family Business, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, International Entrepreneurship and Management, and the International Business Review.
Shinnar earned a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in hospitality administration from the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Dana Clark, a professor in the Department of Management, was recognized for his service to the college. Clark is director of the Walker College’s hospitality and tourism management program. He has served on numerous department, college and university-level committees.
His professional contributions include membership on the Tourism Industry Association of North Carolina’s Board of Advisors and serving as co-chair of the Destination Marketing Association of North Carolina’s research committee.
Clark was awarded the Charles Parker Award for Tourism Excellence in 2012. He earned an MBA from the University of Georgia and a Ph.D. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute.
The recipient of the non-tenure track faculty award, Chris Taylor, is a lecturer in the Department of Computer Information Systems.
Taylor’s professional interests include network and information security and cloud computing technologies. He brings to Appalachian several years experience as a network operations manager and security consultant from private industry. Taylor serves as co-faculty advisor of the Appalachian chapter of the Association of Information Technology Professionals and has helped the group achieve consecutive chapter of the year honors in 2012 and 2013.
Taylor received an MBA from Appalachian in 2011.
Donna Lindabury received the outstanding staff award, which honors college staff members who exhibit dedication in service, innovation, workplace morale and service to Appalachian and the community.
Lindabury serves as coordinator for the college’s MBA program and has previously served as international programs coordinator. She began her career with the college as administrative assistant in the Department of Computer Information Systems.
Lindabury holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Appalachian. She is only the second recipient of the staff excellence award. Director of the Walker College’s advising center, Kathy Smith, received the 2012 staff award.
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