Department of Accounting gets new numbers
The Department of Accounting racked up some new numbers according to "Accounting Program Research Rankings by Topical Area and Methodology," a paper published on the Social Science Research Network. The paper ties FSU for the No. 1 spot in accounting information and No. 15 in experiential research.

Nominations for the 2010 Hall of Fame are being accepted now through July 1, 2009
Established in 2003, the College of Business Hall of Fame honors and celebrates individuals who embody the qualities that make the College of Business at Florida State University an extraordinary place to learn and grow. The inductees are business alumni that have excelled in their careers and have made significant contributions to the mission of the College.

Hall of Fame candidates are selected based on their record of exceptional professional and personal achievement. The criteria include:

• Graduated from the College of Business (any degree)
• Career Background
• Professional Recognitions (Industry/Association awards)
• Community Involvement and Recognition
• Service to the College of Business and Florida State University

Recipients must be present at the Hall of Fame ceremony in order to be inducted. Candidates cannot be inducted into the Hall of Fame posthumously. If you would like additional details, please contact Leslie Mille at lmille@cob.fsu.edu or (850) 645-7162 or visit www.cob.fsu.edu/alumni/hall_of_fame.cfm.

2nd Annual Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities hosted on campus
Nineteen veterans with disabilities from post-Sept. 11 conflicts reported to the College of Business June 9 to begin a nine-day Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program. The veterans took classes, participated in workshops and breakout groups, and heard from industry professionals while they created or enhanced their own business plans.

The program brought together world-class faculty from the College of Business with entrepreneurs, disability experts and small businesses to provide an intense education in entrepreneurship. The program, which began with a three-week online course, culminated in the on-campus residency boot camp that is provided to the participants cost-free and is followed by 12 months of ongoing support and mentorship from faculty experts.

In this the second year of the program, veterans heard a keynote address by a 2008 boot camp graduate, J.R. Martinez, who attended the program to learn how to market his persona and now is a regular cast member on the television show All My Children.

The boot camp program, which was begun in 2007 at the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University, is offered at a consortium of schools composed of Florida State, Texas A&M University, the University of California, Los Angeles, Purdue University and Syracuse. The program has been recognized by the Army Community Covenant program of the Department of the Army as a "national best practice" program. Read more on the EBV at www.cob.fsu.edu.

Entrepreneurship Day a success
Held Mar. 20, the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship sponsored the Second Annual Entrepreneurship Day (E-Day). It was a full day of interaction between students and entrepreneurs from Tallahassee and the region. The morning session was interactive with the speaker introducing a series of roundtable discussions. This activity was followed by a five-course progressive luncheon that included a question-and-answer session with guest entrepreneurs. The afternoon keynote speaker was followed by a reception in which students were engaged in a networking opportunity.

Guest entrepreneurs included Arthur Aveling and Pam Aveling, King Arthur Tools; Fred Beshears, Simpson Nurseries; Bobby Boeneke, Residential Elevators; Pam Butler, Aegis Computer; Tracey Cohen, Target Copy; Bryan Desloge, Desloge Home Oxygen & Medical Equipment; Joe Douglas and Mike Vaughn, 131 Main Restaurants; Darrell Goodwin, IRBsearch, LLC; Jay Kelly; Florida Fence; Allen Nobles, Nobles Consulting; Pam Nobles, Diversified Design; Mark Scott, Velocity Sports and The Bowden Leadership Foundation; and Donna Smithey, In Tents Events.

FSU accepts a limited number of students in its entrepreneurship major, where they are trained to run their own business or work for other companies in an entrepreneurial capacity. These students often double major in entrepreneurship and another business discipline such as finance or accounting.

Twitterific!
The College's social networking profile is now complete, for the moment at least. The College of Business joined Twitter, http://twitter.com/FSUBiz, last month and is now streaming more videos than ever on YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/COBFSU. We can also be found on Facebook, search for "Florida State University – The College of Business." We are located under Pages. To join our Linkedin page, search under Groups.

The following COB faculty received promotion and/or tenure:

• Deb Armstrong (MIS) promoted to associate professor.
• Paul Bowen (ACG) received tenure.
• Frank Heflin (ACG) was promoted to professor.
• Daekwan Kim (MAR) was promoted to associate professor and received tenure.
• Woody Kim (HOS) received tenure.
• Rick Morton (ACG) was promoted to professor.

Al Bathke (ACG) received a 2008-09 University Undergraduate Teaching Award from Florida State University.

Randy Blass (MAN) has been named the managing director of the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship. Blass will provide oversight and management of the daily operations of the Center, including coordination of special events and developing stronger ties with the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program under the Jim Moran Institute umbrella. Jim Combs (MAN) is the executive director of the Institute. Blass is also the recipient of a 2008-09 University Undergraduate Teaching Award from Florida State University.

Patty Born (RMI) was elected to the board of the American Risk and Insurance Association for a three-year position.

Mike Brady (MAR) is the recipient of the Journal of Service Research Best Reviewer Award for 2009. The award is given to a reviewer who has provided reviews of exceptional quality, quicker review times than average and more reviews completed than average. JSR is considered to be one of the field's top-tier journals and is clearly the flagship scholarly journal in the service domain.

Jim Carson (RMI) has been selected as the interim editor for the Journal of Insurance Regulation. Additionally, he spoke about risk and insurance to the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises, in Washington D.C. this past May. Carson was also was recently listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for public economic journals for his paper, "Catastrophes and the Demand for Life Insurance."

Jim Combs (MAN) has been invited to be a Fellow of the Southern Management Association (SMA) and will be inducted this November. Combs has been a long-standing leader in the SMA, most recently serving on the Board and Editor Selection Committee for the Journal of Management.

Joey George (MIS) was elected the president-elect of the Association for Information Systems (AIS). Founded in 1994, AIS is a professional organization whose purpose is to serve as the premier global organization for academics specializing in information systems. George begin his term as president-elect this July, and will become president the following year and immediate past president the year after.

Ron Goldsmith (MAR) received a best paper award in the Marketing Research/Demographics/Consumer Behavior track of the Association of Marketing Theory and Practice Conference for "Fashion Innovativeness and Normative Susceptibility to Interpersonal Influence," which was co-authored with Ron Clark, a doctoral alumnus.

Bill Hillison (ACG) received a Graduate Faculty Mentor Award by FSU.

Charlie Hofacker (MAR) has been appointed as co-editor of the Journal of Interactive Marketing for a three-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2010.

April Knill (FIN) had her paper titled, "Venture Capitalists' Control: Stimulating or Stunting," listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for CGM: Entrepreneurship.

Jim Risigno (HOS), a former faculty member in the Dedman School of Hospitality and a COB alumnus, was honored with a Circle of Gold Award by the FSU Alumni Association. This award recognizes worthy individuals who, through their service and achievements, personify the University's tradition of excellence.

C.F. Sirmans (RMI) was ranked No. 1 in research productivity covering the 1990-2006 period in a recent article. Globally, Florida State University was ranked No. 17 in research appearing in the three core real estate journals tracked and No. 23 when considering a broader set of nine real estate journals. Sirmans also has been named an honorary RERI Fellow by the Real Estate Research Institute (RERI) in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the Institute and the real estate profession. RERI is a non-profit organization created to stimulate high quality research on real estate investment performance and market fundamentals that elevate the quality of real estate decision making.

Stacy Sirmans (RMI) was ranked No. 20 in research productivity covering the 1990-2006 period in a recent article. He also was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Real Estate Society, one of the world's leading academic real estate associations publishing five academic journals including the Journal of Real Estate Research. Sirmans is also currently serving on the Board of Directors of the Southern Finance Association.

Molly Wasko (MIS) received a 2008-09 University Undergraduate Teaching Award and a 2008-09 University Graduate Teaching Award from FSU.

McKay Price (FIN), a Ph.D. candidate, is one of 10 recipients receiving a 2009 University Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award.

William Buslepp (ACG), a doctoral student, had his research for his dissertation spotlighted in the Chicago Tribune. Buslepp's major professor is Bruce Billings.

Distinguished Ph.D. Alumni Award
On Friday, March 27, Hugh J. Watson received the College's 2009 Distinguished Ph.D. Alumni Award. The award was established in 2007 to recognize high-quality Ph.D. graduates and their professional achievements and honors alumni who have used their education and experience to achieve significant levels of success and distinction through their high level of performance. Watson is a professor of MIS in the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia and the holder of a C. Herman and Mary Virginia Terry Chair of Business Administration. He received his Ph.D. in management from the College of Business in 1969.

Distinguished Speaker Series
Bruce Lucker ('64 Hospitality Administration), President and CEO, Signature Golf, was the spring speaker for the Charles A. Bruning Distinguished Speaker Series. Lucker is widely recognized as a marketing innovator in the sports and entertainment world. Watch the presentation here.

Leadership Day
For the past three years, the College has hosted a Leadership Day prior to the Hall of Fame Dinner, utilizing the vast talent and knowledge of our past and new inductees to infuse our classrooms with real-world experiences and to bring our students face-to-face with industry leaders. This year our students personally interacted with our three current Hall of Fame inductees: Bob Sasser ('73 Marketing), president and CEO, Dollar Tree, Inc.; Bill Smith ('76 Finance), president and CEO, Capital City Bank Group, Inc.; and J.T. Thomas ('73 Business), president, Three Rivers Barbecue, LLC. Meg Crofton ('74 MAR, '75 MBA), president, Walt Disney World Resort, a 2008 inductee, also participated.

7th Annual Hall of Fame Dinner & Ceremony
Bob Sasser ('73 Marketing), President & CEO, Dollar Tree, Inc.; Bill Smith ('76 Finance), President & CEO, Capital City Bank Group, Inc.; and J.T. Thomas ('73 Business), President, Three Rivers Barbecue, LLC, were all honored and inducted into the Hall of Fame on April 3. Since the inception of the Hall of Fame in 2003, the College of Business has honored outstanding graduates who embody the qualities that make the College of Business at Florida State University an extraordinary place to learn and grow. Truly our alumni continue to solidify our national reputation as a top tier college of business. Visit our photo link.

Board of Governors hold Spring Meeting
The COB Board of Governors held its spring meeting on April 4 in the Starry Conference Room. The Board discussed the future of business schools and received updates on several College programs and initiatives, current fund-raising and budget needs.

Networking on the Road
Scott Price ('97 Accounting) and Tina Price ('97 MIS) hosted a reception for College of Business Alumni at Roy's Restaurant in Tampa, Fla. Guests enjoyed the opportunity to network and hear the latest College of Business news. Visit our photo link.

Retired Faculty & Staff Luncheon
Several retired faculty and staff members attended our fourth annual Retired Faculty & Staff Luncheon. Twenty retirees enjoyed a delicious lunch at the University Center Club while sharing stories of their retirement and hearing the College's latest news. Visit our photo link.

The College of Business is the proud recipient of a $250,000 gift from the Kislak Family Fund for its Center for Real Estate Education & Research. The gift will be used to support the expansion of the Center's programs serving students, faculty and Florida's real estate and business community.

Former FSU student and professional golfer Paul Azinger gave the College of Business' Professional Golf Program a $30,000 donation from his play in the 2008 Ryder Cup tournament.