King Fellow Citation 2016 - Ruth May
Suppose a person is walking toward a powerful whirlpool in a body of water. On the
periphery that person can safely wade and even walk away, but at some point as the
person continues to approach the center of the downwardly spiraling water, he or she
can no longer escape the maelstrom and is pulled into the abyss. What determines that
point? And how is this scenario like the institutional and economic structures of
some of the world’s powers? Is there a point of no return in their collapse as well?
This is the kind of deep question addressed in both the scholarly work and pedagogy
of this year’s King Fellow. Disciplinary and international boundaries just do not
exist as this stellar teacher and prolific researcher addresses such diverse issues
as international business and global strategies in Russia, India, China, and the United
Kingdom, designs award winning pedagogy and best practices in online teaching, and
tackles diversity issues at work in a book entitled “Bridging Diversity Barriers: American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.”
Moreover, the teaching is often done on international and national study trips—Russia,
Ireland, Prague, and Washington, DC. are just some of the locations and subjects of
these learning adventures with students, and the research has been accomplished through
collaborations too many to mention, but are often ones that contain UD colleagues.
The scholarship is widely published in prestigious journals and books, and the expertise
has been sought by over 50 companies including such big name corporations as Microsoft
and Nokia.
Colleagues view our Fellow as a leader among faculty, always willing to serve or take
on leadership roles at either the college or University level, and as a mentor to
younger faculty having been known to do such things as give up an entire Saturday
helping a new teacher develop online materials for the first time. Our Fellow’s wealth
of experience and knowledge of finance have made committees related to faculty salaries
and benefits an almost continuous area of service, but a quick perusal of the rosters
of the AACSB accreditation committees, the University’s standing committees, and the
College of Business strategic planning and development committees shows that finance
is not close to the limit of our Fellow’s expertise.
Our King Fellow is known as a tough but fair teacher and is consistently seen as one
of the best teachers by students in the College of Business. One MBA graduate commented
that, “her online classes are simply amazing. Their structure and organization should
serve as a paradigm for online learning.” Furthermore, our Fellow is always willing
to try something new to offer opportunities for our students, as is exemplified with
her recent willingness to develop new courses for undergraduates after teaching at
the graduate level for many years.
This year’s King Fellow serves her profession, her University, and her Church as a
strong advocate for justice and has chosen to live her life guided by a quote frequently
told her by her father, "Justice rides a slow horse but she always crosses the finish
line." Please join me in congratulating our 2016 King Fellow – Dr. Ruth May.
