n NEWS BRIEFS
PROFESSORS NAMED ASSOCIATE DEANS
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n Fall 2019, Brian Anderson, Ph.D., associate professor of Entrepreneurship and Sidne Ward, Ph.D., associate professor of Management Information Systems were appointed associate deans of the Bloch School. Anderson is working with curriculum committees and taskforces to design new degree and certificate programs; support efforts to encourage innovation in the delivery of academic programs; provide administrative leadership for staff involved in advising, recruiting and student services; work with staff and faculty at Bloch and UMKC to develop and execute strategies designed to improve outcomes related to enrollment, retention, and the student experience and act as a liaison with university offices supporting the delivery of our academic programs. Ward is overseeing AACSB accreditation processes and assurance of learning activities; support efforts associated with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) and NASPAA accreditation; support efforts to enhance and improve physical infrastructure and facility utilization; and support efforts to encourage co-curricular engagement through resource allocation, initiative development and coordination efforts. Ward also will serve as the Bloch School Director of Global Management Education Initiatives.
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BLOCH n 2020
The landscape of the family farm takes center stage in “The Land,” the fourth movie by Stephen Pruitt, economics and finance professor. The movie is available to stream on Amazon. Photo provided by Stephen Pruitt.
BLOCH PROFESSOR SCREENS LATEST MOVIE
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he Land, the latest independent feature film directed by Stephen Pruitt, the Arvin Gottlieb/Missouri Endowed Chair of Business Economics and Finance, had its world premiere at the iconic TLC Chinese Theater in Hollywood in June 2019 and subsequently claimed top prizes at film festivals throughout the Midwest. The movie, co-written and co-produced by Pruitt and his wife, Mary Settle Pruitt, was shot in the greater Kansas City area and deals with timely issues involving rural depression and suicide as a result of the current agricultural crisis. It addresses the question facing many individuals approaching the end of their working careers: “Are we more than what we do?” “It has been a wonderful privilege to see Mary’s and my films have such an extraordinary impact on people’s lives. ‘The Tree’ (released in 2017) is now being shown in nursing homes and public libraries by senior organizations such as AARP, the Bernard Osher Foundation, and Kansas Advocates for Better Care (KABC) all over the area and beyond,” Pruitt said. “The Land” will be released on Amazon this spring.
RENZ HONORED FOR SERVICE
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avid Renz, professor emeritus and director of the Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership, was honored in 2019 by the city of Kansas City, Missouri for his decades of service in working with the nonprofit sector. Former Mayor Sly James and the city council, led by former Mayor Pro Tem Scott Wagner, approved a resolution recognizing Renz, “whose leadership and governance expertise has impacted
the nonprofit sector in Kansas City and organizations around the world.”
