May 13, Wilson Wire | David W. Wilson College of Business

From the Dean's Desk

After forty years at UNI, and more meetings than I care to count, I retire effective July 14, 2026.

What began in 1985 as an adjunct teaching information systems (with teaching evaluations proof that I had found the learning curve, and was at the bottom of it) grew into a career shaped by remarkable colleagues, dedicated staff and truly outstanding students. Together, we built programs, expanded global engagement, strengthened accreditation, navigated a pandemic, and somehow kept moving forward, often with humor, teamwork and some administrative magic.

I stayed because of you: colleagues who challenge and support one another, ask hard questions, send timely memes and remain deeply committed to student success. And I stayed because of our students, humble, hardworking and determined, who remind us why this work matters.

I am profoundly grateful to my family, especially my husband, Reid, whose support made this journey possible and whose retirement I am now fully prepared to disrupt.

Thank you for the privilege of serving as your dean and for the opportunity to advocate for this exceptional college. It has truly been a great ride.

Purple for life,

Leslie, UNI MBA '84
Dean for just a while longer!

May 15 — Commencement (Friday evening for Wilson College)
May 18 — Dean Wilson’s University-Wide Retirement Reception, 2-4 p.m., remarks at 3 p.m., CBB Student Lounge
June 2 — Transfer Orientation, Wear Purple
June 4 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 5 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 8 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 9 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 12 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 15 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 16 — Orientation, Wear Purple
June 23 — Transfer Orientation, Wear Purple
July 15 — Dean Ken Brown’s First Day
August 17-21 — New Faculty Orientation
August 20 — Faculty Return
August 24 — Classes Begin at 8 a.m.

Creating a positive workplace climate is a team sport – no single person, and definitely no single dean, does it alone. Each of us contributes.

To better understand where we were and where we needed to go, the College adopted the Gallup Q12 Engagement Survey in 2020 (on the recommendation of Executive Advisory Board members). Our initial results placed us in the 76th percentile nationally. That sounds impressive, though it also meant only 48% of employees were considered “engaged,” delivering a clear sign of work to do.

Then came the pandemic, which understandably became our top priority for a while. Beginning in 2023–24, we returned to the survey results with fresh eyes and began responding more intentionally. We articulated shared expectations through a Values and Behaviors document, recognizing that we did not emerge from the pandemic as the same organization or the same people we were before. Our students certainly were not! Maybe, still, are not!

Those values were integrated into faculty hiring, with tenure-track candidates meeting the full leadership team over lunch. The feedback? Positive, informative, and occasionally surprised by the size of the table. We repeated the survey in 2025 and used the results to guide next steps, including launching BCS Briefs, Wilson Wire, and Wilson Kudos Kards. I can personally attest: receiving a Kudos Kard can make a person cry.

Departments also responded in their own ways, reinforcing that culture is built collectively. While Gallup has since adjusted its reporting, with exact comparisons tricky, our most recent results show 64% of faculty and staff are engaged, a meaningful improvement since 2020.

The Metrics Minute graphic summarizes all three surveys. We’ll continue the conversation through group discussions this summer or fall and at the Annual Strategic Planning Meeting on June 24, which future dean Ken Brown will attend. Dean Brown already loves Wilson College, and we’re confident he’ll continue supporting a climate where people and good ideas can thrive.

Thank you for your participation in the Q12 Survey. Our work to ensure Wilson College is a great place to work is having results, thanks to each of you!

Gallup Results	2020	2025	2026
Grand Mean	4.06	4.11	4.19
Q00 - Overall Satisfaction	4.15	4.01	4.15
Basic Needs
Q01	4.47	4.42	4.36
Q02	4.12	4.28	4.38
Individual Needs
Q03	4.15	4.27	4.27
Q04	3.48	3.51	3.72
Q05	4.61	4.30	4.43
Q06	4.10	3.96	4.06
Teamwork Needs
Q07	4.02	3.94	3.96
Q08	4.08	4.23	4.28
Q09	4.38	4.19	4.21
Q10	3.17	3.92	4.14
Growth
Q11	3.88	4.06	4.10
Q12	4.22	4.28	4.32
Participants	100	100	96
Possible Participants	110	108	103
% Participated	91%	93%	93%

I am proud to announce the 2026 recipients of our Annual Wilson College Awards. I hope you were able to attend the reception on May 8; if not, this newsletter has the update! As Dean, I have always been very excited to recognize the recipients and celebrate the excellence that is Wilson College! I will greatly miss this event!

Rusty Guay, Management, Distinguished Teaching Award. Rusty Guay is known for his engaging, student-focused teaching style. He blends academic rigor with mentorship, creativity and practical learning opportunities, motivating students to strive for their personal best. Through his genuine dedication to all facets of his work — teaching, research and service — Rusty embodies the highest standards of faculty excellence.
Robin Chen, Economics, Distinguished Scholarship Award. Over the past 15 months, Robin has had exceptional research productivity, including but not limited to: 4 PRJs in 15 months, two UNI capacity-building grants, a pre-tenure faculty research grant and a 2026 Wilson College Summer Research Award. He is leveraging these awards to support student research, funding five UG researchers to help with AI-related projects.
Ronnie Chen, Finance, Distinguished Service Award. As the only tenured faculty member in Finance, Ronnie has consistently taken on service roles necessary to represent the department and ensure the success of finance tenure-track faculty. From student organization advisor to Wilson Faculty Senate, from multiple search committees, including the dean search, to the UNI Faculty Senate and Budget Committee. Ronnie is everywhere, including serving his discipline on two conference program committees.
MBA Faculty, Exceptional Impact Award. Over the past several years, our MBA faculty have implemented a major transformation of the curriculum and pedagogy, which has been instrumental in increasing our MBA enrollments. Thanks to those who consistently attend the MBA meetings and provide the needed engagement to ensure the success of this graduate program.
Matthew Wilson, Marketing & Entrepreneurship, Distinguished Instructor Award. Through innovative teaching and leadership in advertising and digital media, Wilson bridges academic theory and the fast-paced realities of the business world. Students demonstrate the impact of the strategic thinking he seeks to instill through student success in regional and national AAF competitions, as well as their own career success. Matthew is creating future marketing leaders.
IA-CEO Staff (Todd Hutcheson, Stacy Mullinex, Judy Butler, Janell Crow and Annette Stevenson) and Atul Mitra, Management, Inspiring Innovation Award. IA-CEO has partnered with Atul and the Wilson College academic unit to elevate employee ownership practice and research. In a very short time, we've gained a reputation for this partnership. So far, Wilson College can boast of three Rutgers Fellows — faculty expanding their research to answer questions about employee ownership.
Brianne Anderson, Economics / MBA, Above and Beyond Award. Bri is recognized for her exceptional work supporting the MBA program. She accepted responsibility for a poorly managed application process and now consistently meets the Graduate College's process metrics. The MBA is now THE example of a program that effectively and efficiently manages applications! Thank you, Bri.
David Deeds, Accounting, is the inaugural recipient of our newest award, the Community Engagement Award. A significant portion of David's service is to the Cedar Valley, where he is affectionately known as Mr. Waterloo. His efforts to revive historical homes and businesses will be a lasting testament to his work. David is an outstanding example of how faculty can apply their skills and knowledge to greatly impact our community and economy.
The Tim Williams Fellow designation honors a faculty member who has achieved great success in the classroom. Jade Chu is the 2026-27 Fellow. Jade is known for her energy and enthusiasm inside and outside the classroom. She exhibits through her work our #1 value — a focus on student success! This is the teaching quality that Tim Williams seeks to honor.
AND, there is more to shout about!
Congratulations to Andres Cuadros-Meñaca (Economics) and Bulin Zhang (Management-HR) for each receiving a 2026 UNI Outstanding Teaching Award! It is wonderful to see our tenure-track faculty recognized for excellence in teaching!
Congratulations to the UNI NAIOP team on taking first place at the event, as posted on LinkedIn. Thanks to Brett Olsen, Jim Dugdale, Kirsten Juhl, emeritus Art Cox and the alumni and friends of the program who provided coaching to all the teams.
Congratulations and thank you to Ronnie Chen for his students' advancement to the FINAL round of the CSBS Community Bank Case Competition. They beat UC Berkley as well as 21 others to reach the finals! The full list can be found at this CSBS press release. Proof positive, #ReadyForBusiness as well as anyone else!

This is the last Wilson Wire of the academic year. If you recall, Wilson Wire was implemented in response to last year's Q12 survey that highlighted the need to improve communication across the college. Please take this short survey to share your feedback on Wilson Wire as we plan for next year!