For the past 10 years, I have had the joy and privilege to lead the School of Business at Stevens Institute of Technology. I remember, when I joined, how excited I was; I could see a business school with huge potential, at the intersection of business and technology, within a rigorous technological university. My background in business and technology was a very good fit, I was inspired by the leadership of the university and the enthusiasm of faculty and students, and the strategic plan that we developed was truly ambitious and determined.
Within these 10 years, lots of changes have happened in business and academia. Digital and remote/hybrid have become the modus operandi, all the business roles have been redefined, while new ones have appeared with dramatic intensity, and new skillsets are required for young professionals. A new way of work, collaboration and communication has emerged. Knowledge is being rediscovered, academic programs are being redesigned, research is being repositioned, and executives are learning how to unlearn and learn again.
None of these changes I could have predicted 10 years ago, at least not to the degree they happened. And still, with the support of our amazing faculty, staff and students, we were able not only to address these challenges, but at the same time to drastically transform the school, set an inspiring vision, and put more emphasis to what really counts - student success, research relevance and impact. With new innovative programs launched, top faculty hired and a culture of excellence, collaboration, empathy, transparency and inclusion, we were able to grow our incoming freshman class by more than 350%, our graduate full-time class by more than 200%, achieve consistent stellar placement results - more than 95%, even during the pandemic - for both our undergraduate and graduate students, grow publications in the elite FT50 category of journals by more than 250%, and support, retain and grow our exceptional faculty. During these years the school achieved AACSB accreditation – the first non-STEM-related accreditation in Stevens’ history, has been renamed to School of Business, and has been aggressively climbing the national rankings of the top 100 Business School (#68 last year).
Today, 10 years after I joined, I remain equally if not more excited. The MaCuDE project, launched two years ago with the support of AACSB and PwC, involving more than 100 business schools under the leadership of Stevens and aiming to revise the management curriculum for the digital era, is starting to bring results. CRAFT, the first-ever NSF-funded research center launched just last year to advance research in financial technologies is fully operational and has already enlisted 13 major financial firms to support its research. This year, Stevens concluded its very successful capital campaign, and also opened doors to two amazing towers on campus that will host student residences and other student-facing units. Also this year, the School of Business had its best hiring season, with 10 additional top faculty joining us next fall, its best undergraduate recruiting season breaking record in enrollments and selectivity, and will also probably come close to having its best graduate recruiting season. And next year, the new Stevens Strategic Plan will be in place, with a number of bold strategic initiatives to keep us evolving and growing.
These 10 years I have been fortunate to have the full support of the faculty, the students and the staff of the school, as well as the leadership of the university. It has been an amazing community. Thank you all for being part of this extraordinary 10-year journey with me. I look forward to even more achievements together.
Sincerely,
Gregory Prastacos
Dean, School of Business
Dean Prastacos (center) with faculty and staff of the School of Business
