I am pleased to announce that the next GEM Award goes to the faculty and staff of the School of Business Administration for achieving accreditation by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International. AACSB accreditation is a great honor and a great source of pride for our entire university.

AACSB is the premier accreditor of business schools in the world and is the hallmark of excellence in business education. This accreditation has been earned by less than five percent of the world's business programs.

Led by Hector Quintanilla, Ph.D., School of Business Administration dean, the following faculty and staff members worked tirelessly to develop and implement the accreditation plan:

• Hector Quintanilla, Ph.D., Dean
• Sameer Vaidya, Ph.D., Associate Dean
• Trisha Anderson, Ph.D.
• Thomas Bell, Ph.D.
• Chasiti Dixon
• Rodney Erakovich, Ph.D.
• Shana Hellinger
• Sandra Hile Hart, Ph.D.
• Randy Lockhart, Ph.D.
• Kevin McGarry, LL.M.
• Tommy Nichols, Ph.D.
• Gokcen Ogruk, Ph.D.
• Kalpana Pai, Ph.D.
• Kaylee Perry
• Tom Smith, Ph.D.
• Sarah Stivison
• Thomas D. Tolleson, Ph.D.
• Kimberly Webb
• Shengxiong Wu, Ph.D.
• Sinan Yildirim, Ph.D.

There are also several members of the university community outside of the business school that helped prepare for the AACSB site visit. The entire process, which took seven years to complete, had many working parts from start to finish. This is a wonderful example of how dedication, collaboration and commitment can help us reach our goals as a university.