Newswise — AUSTIN, Texas — Eric Hirst has been appointed senior associate dean of the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. His appointment began Feb. 1, 2016.

“I am extremely pleased that Eric will help lead our school through its next phase of growth,” said Jay Hartzell, dean of the McCombs School. “Eric’s leadership has been instrumental in maintaining and extending academic program excellence at McCombs.”

For the past 10 years Hirst served as the associate dean for graduate programs at the McCombs School, managing a portfolio of six Texas MBA programs. One of Hirst’s many accomplishments includes establishing a consistent brand for all MBA programs by bringing them under one Texas MBA umbrella.

Hirst also made significant innovations and redesigns to the graduate programs’ curriculum. Under his leadership the Texas MBA programs grew and were notably enhanced, which is reflected in the rankings.

Most recently, Hirst led the internal design committee for Rowling Hall, a new facility that will house the Texas MBA and Texas MSTC programs beginning in fall 2017. He attributes the innovative design of Rowling Hall to the faculty, staff and students that contributed to the future vision for the school. “This is not one person’s project,” said Hirst.

One of Hirst’s goals as senior associate dean is to help enhance the national and global reputation of the school as the leader in business education and research. He will also assist Dean Hartzell in developing the school’s strategic plan.

Hirst looks forward to working with the faculty at McCombs. “We have dedicated, skilled and caring faculty members, who not only are among the elite researchers in their fields, but also do an outstanding job in the classroom.” As a recipient of numerous teaching awards over the years, Hirst expressed that he will miss working closely with students but will continue teaching on a reduced schedule.

Hirst holds the King Ranch Chair for Business Leadership and the John Arch White Professor of Business. He earned his B.A. and M.Acc. from the University of Waterloo, Ontario, and Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota. He joined the McCombs School of Business’ Department of Accounting in 1991.

For more information, contact: Samantha Harris, [email protected] or (512) 471-6746.

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