Barbara E. Kahn launched new global initiatives and academic programs during her tenure as dean of the School of Business Administration.

Barbara E. Kahn, who launched new global initiatives and academic programs during her tenure as dean of the University of Miami’s School of Business Administration, will step down from that role on January 15, 2011, UM has announced.

“I have been honored to serve as dean of the School of Business Administration since 2007,” Kahn said. “The school has seen tremendous growth over the last few years and is currently in a very strong position. I am proud of what the faculty, students, and staff have accomplished.”

Kahn is returning to The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania to be with her husband, who is also a professor there.

A noted scholar on consumer choice, variety seeking, and brand loyalty, and widely published in the top journals in her field, Kahn quickly put her stamp on UM’s School of Business Administration, launching a new Ph.D. program and establishing a new emphasis in health sector management and policy.

Some of the new programs and initiatives that were started under her leadership include a new Center in Health Sector Management and Policy as well as a new undergraduate major and minor in the area. The school also launched an M.D./M.B.A. joint program with UM’s Miller School of Medicine.

She also recruited top faculty members from some of the world’s leading business schools, such as Duke, MIT, and Harvard.

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The University of Miami’s Department of Economics, with support from the School of Business Administration, the World Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank, is organizing a meeting of the Impact Evaluation Network (IEN) of the Latin American and the Caribbean Economic Association (LACEA) at UM. The meeting will take place on Friday and Saturday, October 8 and 9, and will consist of two lectures each morning by Harvard University professor Guido Imbens on recent methodological developments in program evaluation. Imbens is one of the world’s foremost experts in this area and in econometrics in general. During both afternoons, eight papers will be presented in the area of econometrics of program evaluation and policy interventions in developing countries.

Participants must register and pay a registration fee, which has been waived for UM faculty and students. Registration closes on Wednesday, September 1. For more information on the meeting, click here.

The University of Miami’s School of Business Administration has established a Center for Health Sector Management and Policy that will serve as a resource to businesses and policy-making bodies, conduct and disseminate leading edge research, offer consultative services to the health care and business communities, and provide training and education for those in the health sector.

“The School of Business Administration is committed to providing local, regional, and hemispheric leadership in health care management and policy,” says Dean Barbara E. Kahn. “This new center of excellence, the only one of its kind in the southeastern U.S., will play a pivotal role in helping businesses, governments, and organizations throughout the U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean find solutions to today’s complex health care challenges.”

Through the center’s experts bureau, which includes faculty from the business school, leading authorities in health sector management and policy will be available to speak and provide expertise to local, state, and national legislative bodies, government agencies, the news media, trade associations, conference planners, and other organizations.

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Starting in July, the University of Miami’s School of Business Administration will offer a certificate program in General Business. This weekend program provides an opportunity for professionals who seek an advanced business education but are not currently looking to complete a full M.B.A. degree program. Students may take one or more courses for credit but must satisfactorily complete all required coursework to earn a certificate. Courses include:

• Accounting for Decision-Making and Control
• Fundamentals of Finance
• Managing Responsible Behavior in Organizations
• Foundations of Marketing Management

Applicants must have an undergraduate degree to enroll in these certificate programs. To learn more, please call 305-284-5670 or click here.

The University of Miami School of Business Administration will offer a new undergraduate major in health sector management and policy beginning in fall 2010. The major is designed to prepare students for business careers within the health care industry, as well as to pursue advanced degree programs in health administration, health economics, medical sociology, and public health.

The launch of the major expands the school’s portfolio of health sector programs, which also include an undergraduate minor, an M.D./M.B.A. program offered jointly with the Miller School of Medicine, and a health sector-focused executive M.B.A. program, which the school has offered for more than 30 years.

“The launch of the major in health sector management and policy is another important step in the school’s ongoing strategy to build on its core areas of strength and in areas where we see a growing demand from our students and the business community,” said Barbara E. Kahn, dean of the School of Business Administration. “Part of our mission is to foster excellence in health management education, policy, and research, and this major, along with our other innovative health sector programs, helps fulfill that.”

Students who select the new major will gain a thorough understanding of the specialized language, financing, and politics of the health care system. They will thus have an edge in launching careers within organizations such as hospitals and health systems, medical groups, pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms, care management groups, health care information technology and supply chain management companies, policy organizations, health insurers, and health care industry consulting firms.

“The health care sector makes up more than 16 percent of all economic activity in the U.S. and is expected to grow more than 20 percent over the next eight years,” said Steven Ullmann, director of the school’s programs in health sector management and policy. “As the population ages and as more and more managers are needed to improve quality and efficiency while controlling costs, health sector employment will continue to grow at a rapid rate. Our students will be well prepared for the opportunities that come with this growth.”

Reflecting the cross-disciplinary nature of business and the health care industry, the major in health sector management and policy will draw from a variety of disciplines. In addition to six required business courses, students will select electives offered through the University’s College of Arts and Sciences and School of Nursing and Health Studies.

The University of Miami’s School of Business Administration, in conjunction with the Network and Learn series, will host an information session on its evening/weekend M.B.A. programs on Thursday, June 10 at 6 p.m. at the McLamore Executive Education Center, third floor. At the session, Linda L. Neider, professor of management, will present “Managing Generational Differences in the Workplace.” The event, which includes a networking reception, is free. For more information or to RSVP, call 305-284-2510, e-mail mba@miami.edu, or visit www.ummba2010.com.

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a grant to the University of Miami to establish a Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), which will be housed at the School of Business Administration.

The University will receive $355,000 in the first year of the four-year grant cycle, for which the University has requested $1.5 million. Each year the grant will be matched by UM, providing total funding of up to $3 million for the center, which will be used to carry out programs that increase and promote the nation’s capacity for international understanding and competitiveness, particularly in the service sector. The center is among just three new CIBERs to be established this year and among 33 in total to receive a portion of the nearly $13 million in available funding for the first year.

“The University of Miami, centered in a remarkably dynamic gateway for international business, is an ideal location for a center of this nature, and we are delighted to receive this award,” said Barbara E. Kahn, dean of the School of Business Administration. “The UM CIBER will provide leaders, citizens, students, and faculty throughout the country with distinctive international business resources and expertise from the University, the School of Business Administration, our partners, and the South Florida community.”

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