by jlansber | May 5, 2022 | Notes from the Dean
Interim Dean Tom Donley | Photo by Kathy Hillegonds
This July the Driehaus College of Business will welcome Sulin Ba, the Treibick Family Endowed Chair in information technology at the University of Connecticut, as our new dean. Professor Ba and I are working closely on a leadership transition that supports the continuing success of our college, and she looks forward to joining DePaul, connecting with our alumni and getting to know the Chicago business community. I invite you to read more about our incoming dean.
Reflecting on my tenure as interim dean, I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to lead a college community that cares so deeply about our students and the DePaul mission. With support from our alumni and the business community, we have overcome many challenges caused by the pandemic and advanced student success in a number of ways:
Reimagining our curriculum. Our faculty will launch a revised bachelor’s in business program this fall with guidance from alumni and business leaders on the skills that make graduates successful. The updated program emphasizes analytical skills for data-based decision-making, entrepreneurial thinking that drives innovation, and socially responsible leadership. Experiential learning opportunities—such as the real-world student consulting projects highlighted in this issue’s feature story—continue to be an important part of all of our programs, giving students a chance to apply the skills they’ve learned. In the coming year we also plan to expand opportunities for alumni and others to refresh their professional skills through new certificate programs offered by our Hay Center for Leadership Development.
Leveraging technology to enhance learning. DePaul has invested significantly in new classroom technologies, and our faculty members have embraced training that empowers them to teach engagingly in person, online and in hybrid modes. We are offering courses in a wider range of modalities that provide students-especially graduate students-the flexibility they need to complete their business education while fulfilling work and family responsibilities. This spring our college launched a Business Education in Technology and Analytics (BETA) Lab to accelerate the infusion of technology into our courses, research and community collaborations.
Elevating student and faculty engagement. We are focusing more resources on delivering a personalized, engaging and compassionate educational experience to our students through a new role at our college, associate dean for student success; fresh collaborations with DePaul’s admission and student affairs offices; and faculty mentoring programs.
Strengthening business and alumni connections. This academic year I’ve worked with our Business Advisory Council to re-envision the role of this group of prominent alumni and business leaders in supporting our college and its students. Their recommendations provide new ideas for engaging council members in the life of our college and leveraging their insight and connections to benefit our students. We’re proud to profile alumnus Brian Ruben, one of the council members who helped lead this initiative, in this issue.
I leave the leadership of the Driehaus College of Business in good hands and with confidence about the future.
Thomas Donley
Interim Dean
Driehaus College of Business
by jlansber | May 5, 2022 | College News
Sandra Shelton | Photo by Kathy Hillegonds
Last fall the Driehaus College of Business lost one of its most influential faculty members. Sandra Shelton, an accountancy professor who mentored PhD candidates of color across the nation, died on Oct. 4. Shelton taught auditing and corporate governance at DePaul for 27 years, and as one of the founding members of the nonprofit PhD Project, she encouraged students of color to become business professors, including several who now teach at DePaul.
In 2016 she was named the KPMG/Neil F. Casson Endowed Professor of Accountancy in recognition of her contributions to business education and the accounting profession. DePaul has established the Sandra Shelton Memorial Scholarship to honor Shelton and carry on her legacy. Learn more about Shelton’s lasting impact and the scholarship at give.depaul.edu/SandraShelton.
by jlansber | May 5, 2022 | College News
The Driehaus College of Business has reimagined its Bachelor of Science in Business (BSB) core curriculum with input from employers about the knowledge and skills they seek when recruiting graduates. Debuting this fall, the revised program begins with three new courses—Business Fundamentals and the Entrepreneurial Mindset, Business Analytics, and Business for Social Good.
“By completing this series of courses early in the program, students gain an immediate understanding of how business organizations operate and the range of potential career fields they can pursue, while developing highly marketable analytical skills and a mindset for becoming innovative, socially responsible business professionals,” says Thomas Donley, interim dean of the business college. The revised program also provides more flexibility for students to take electives and add minors tailored to their individual career ambitions.
by jlansber | May 5, 2022 | College News
Hui Lin | Photo by Kathy Hillegonds
Hui Lin, an associate professor and international program administrator, has been named the next director of the School of Accountancy & MIS. Lin will assume her new role July 1. A member of the school’s faculty since 2008, Lin led the college’s international degree and study abroad programs as director of the Driehaus Center for International Business this academic year. She also serves DePaul as an associate director of regional initiatives, focusing on student recruitment and alumni engagement in China. Lin’s teaching and research expertise is in knowledge management, accounting information systems and internal controls.
“My priorities as director will be to attract more students to accounting, ensure resources and support for our faculty and staff, and engage and collaborate with our alumni,” Lin says. She succeeds Ray Whittington, who will return to teaching full time after serving two tenures as director of the school, before and after his 10-year run as dean of the business college from 2006 to 2017.
by jlansber | May 5, 2022 | Alumni Profiles
As an advisory council task force chair, Brian Ruben is helping the business college re-envision how it can engage the strengths, talents and industry connections of alumni and friends on the council.
When Brian Ruben (MSA ’95) started his graduate program at the School of Accountancy & MIS nearly 30 years ago—right around the time he began working at Deloitte in Chicago—he wasn’t sure which direction he wanted to take in his professional career. He chose accounting because “it’s the language of business and every organization needs a good accounting function.” But something sparked for him in the DePaul classroom as he listened to guest lecturers talk about their careers.
“It was inspiring to hear directly from professionals in accounting and learn how they navigated their careers and built their networks, because I was at a stage where I needed to do that from scratch,” Ruben says. “It made an impression on me, seeing a successful professional share their knowledge and having access to that knowledge. That’s something DePaul does really well, leveraging business connections to bring real-world experiences into the classroom.”
Fast-forward years later and Ruben is the one speaking to DePaul students, sharing lessons from his own career journey. Whether he’s in the classroom as an adjunct instructor or guest lecturer, or at a student event as a panelist or recruiter for Deloitte, where he is currently an audit and assurance partner, Ruben is an active and influential business alumnus, following a mantra of “giving back” that he says is the DePaul way.
“I know so many alumni who continued to stay connected to DePaul after graduating, giving back through service or dollars, and over the course of my career, I’ve benefited from the time many of these people have taken out of their busy careers to mentor me,” he says. “Now that I’m in a stage in my career where I feel like I can make a difference, I feel a responsibility to do so.”
Ruben is a proud donor and champion of DePaul. He helps recruit DePaul students and even led a fundraising initiative as part of the university’s annual Blue Demon Challenge in 2021. His efforts helped raise more than $300,000 (and counting) from individuals and the Deloitte Foundation to fund student scholarships and faculty support.
“It was a great way to bring DePaul alumni together at Deloitte and very exciting to see hundreds of alumni in offices around the country rally around something we all have in common,” he says.
Most recently, Ruben supported DePaul’s participation in a Deloitte MADE (Making Accounting Diverse and Equitable) initiative, the Deloitte Foundation Accounting Scholars Program. This scholarship program, for students pursuing a fifth-year master’s in accounting, is part of an effort to increase representation of racially and ethnically diverse students in accounting.
My connections with DePaul have benefited my personal and professional success in many ways. If I can be helpful and promote DePaul and give back insights and opportunities to students who are sitting where I once sat, that’s really satisfying and rewarding for me. I hope I can inspire others to do the same.”
— Brian Ruben (MSA ’95)
Ruben also has helped faculty members incorporate the latest business innovations into the curriculum. When DePaul Finance Associate Professor Lamont Black approached Ruben to collaborate on designing a course on blockchain, Ruben obliged, bringing in his blockchain Deloitte colleagues to provide the knowledge and coaching needed to help develop the course, which is now in its third year.
“I love that DePaul faculty aren’t lecturing out of a book and are truly dedicated to being at the forefront of the most cutting-edge information to bring back to students,” he says. “I think it’s important to contribute to that, as a business professional, for the next generation.”
One of Ruben’s most long-standing contributions has been his service on the Driehaus College of Business Advisory Council, a 60-member group of business leaders who offer industry insight and resources to the college. Ruben has been involved in the council for 10 years, and in his role as a council task force chair this academic year, he has been instrumental in re-envisioning how the business college can engage the strengths, talents and industry connections of council members to support the college and its students.
Encouraged by a former mentor, who also happens to be a DePaul alumnus, Ruben has used his time on the council not only as another way to give back, but also as an opportunity to expand his own professional experiences.
“Through all these experiences, I’ve learned so much about myself, the challenges that academia and universities face, and how to help another organization grow. It’s not all just about giving, giving, giving. That’s certainly a priority, but you also have to get something in return,” Ruben says.
“My connections with DePaul have benefited my personal and professional success in many ways. If I can be helpful and promote DePaul and give back insights and opportunities to students who are sitting where I once sat, that’s really satisfying and rewarding for me. I hope I can inspire others to do the same.”
By Nadia Alfadel Coloma | Photo by Kathy Hillegonds