Long-Time Dean of MU Business School Announces Transition
October 13th, 2009
COLUMBIA, Mo. — On Monday afternoon, Dr. Bruce Walker told the faculty and staff of the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business at the University of Missouri that he will conclude his service as dean at the end of summer 2010. Walker, who had been on the faculty at Arizona State University, came to MU as dean in June 1990. He intends to be a full-time faculty member in the college’s Department of Marketing.
MU’s chief academic officer, Provost Brian Foster, stated, “Dean Walker’s contributions have been enormous. The Trulaske College has seen enrollments grow dramatically and, at the same time, the college’s scholarly productivity and reputation have grown to the point that MU now has one of the nation’s leading business schools. The College is housed in a stunning new facility. The loyalty and support of alumni are very strong. Dr. Walker provided critical leadership in all of these areas.”
Under Walker’s leadership, MU’s business school has engaged hundreds of alumni in its educational activities and has raised tens of millions of dollars in private support for student scholarships, named faculty positions, academic and professional-development programs, and a new building, Harry and Ann Cornell Hall. More than 85 percent of the college’s current faculty and staff members have been hired during Walker’s time as dean. National rankings of the college’s degree programs have improved markedly over the past 10 years. In October 2007, MU’s business school was named the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business in recognition of a series of gifts from Robert and Geraldine Trulaske.
“One need only enter the doors of Cornell Hall to see first-hand the impact Dean Walker has had on the University of Missouri,” MU Chancellor Brady Deaton said. “His ability to mobilize generous alumni support, advance the College of Business on the national stage, and serve the highest interests of our students and faculty will have tremendous benefit for decades to come.”
“We, and that includes so many people, can be very proud of the quality of Mizzou’s business school. In my opinion, the Trulaske College has not only world-class ‘bricks and mortar’ with Cornell Hall, but also top-caliber ‘people and programs’ as evidenced by outstanding students, faculty, staff, alumni, and business partners along with rigorous degree programs and wide-ranging professional-development activities for students,” Walker said. “It’s really been a privilege for me to serve as dean of the Trulaske College of Business,” he added.
Walker was the recipient of the 2008 Pacheco Academic Leadership Award, which is presented to one administrator across the four UM campuses each year. He is the co-author of Marketing, a textbook used in many collegiate business schools around the world. Walker is a member of the boards of directors of Boone County National Bank, Walsworth Publishing Co., and the Missouri Innovation Center-Columbia, and along with his wife Pam, has been actively involved with the United Way in Columbia.
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About the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business
The Trulaske College of Business, founded in 1914, today enrolls approximately 4,000 undergraduate students and 350 graduate students. The college has four academic units – Accountancy, Finance, Management, and Marketing – with 59 full-time faculty members. The college offers an undergraduate degree in business administration, an MBA degree, a 150-hour program that confers both undergraduate and master’s degrees in accountancy, and PhD degrees in both accountancy and business administration. The college takes great pride in the quality and accomplishments of its graduates. More than 31,000 alumni are contributing their expertise to the public and private sectors in every state in the U.S. and in a host of foreign countries.