College of Business

Recent News

Faculty Accomplishments

The COBA faculty members are dedicated to serving our students both in and out of the classroom.  To improve their teaching in the classroom, the COBA faculty members are involved in faculty development to enrich the classroom experience for their students.  Many are leaders in the community through various organizations.  All are involved in serving at their local church congregations with many in the roles of teachers, deacons, or elders.  The following section lists many of the academic achievements of the COBA faculty over this period.

The COBA faculty of the year award presented at the COBA Celebration Dinner went to Gary Ross.  Gary teaches in our accounting program where he teaches both undergraduate and graduate classes.  His teacher evaluations are always above average.  He is creative in his teaching style.  A few years ago, he created the idea of using the board game “Monopoly” to teach accounting concepts.  Several other faculty members have followed his example and used this approach in their principles accounting classes.  Gary had an article accepted to the American Accounting Association national convention on the topic of using “Monopoly” to teach accounting classes.  He will give this presentation in August 2007 at the convention in Chicago, IL.  In the area of service, Gary was appointed as an elder at the Downtown church of Christ earlier this year.  He is an avid reader who completes about 75 books per year.  His students truly know that he cares for them and works hard for them to understand the material.  Gary was selected from a committee of COBA faculty who had received this award in the past few years. 

Articles Published: 

Phil Brown:  “Ethical Exemplification and the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct:  An Empirical Investigation of Auditor and Public Perceptions,” Journal of Business Ethics (October 2006).

Bryan Burks (and Sellani, R.):  “Ethics, Religiosity, and Moral Development of Business Students,” Academy of Business Disciplines (November 2006).

Presentations:

Phil Brown and Bobby Churchman:  “Using Case Studies in the Intermediate Accounting Classroom:  Tips and Techniques.”  American Accounting Association National Convention, Washington, DC (August 2006).

Bryan Burks:  “The Impact of Religiosity on the Ethics of Business Students,” Christian Scholars Conference, Detroit, MI (June 2006).

Allen Figley: 

Presented lecture on management practices of Western vs. Asian Countries at the Guangzho University of Foreign Languages, Guangzho, China (April 2007)

Presented lecture on wealth accumulation in the United States at the Northwestern University, Xian, China (April 2007).

Allen Frazier: 

“Wal-Mart: A Global Enterprise,” Society for Advancement of Management International Conference, Las Vegas, NV (March 2007).

“New Ideas in Leadership,” 76^th Annual Arkansas Water Works and Water Environment Association, Hot Springs, AR (May 2007).

Budd Hebert:

“The Importance of Personal Character in Business,” Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Donetsk, Ukraine (March 2006).

“The Importance of Personal Character in Business” to private business school in San Salvador, El Salvador (July 2006).

Mike Oliver:  Presented an educational module on Human Resource Management in their Certified Manager of Reporting Services Program, Vancouver, BC (March 2007).

Jake Stewart: 

“Cross Cultural Project Management,” Project Management Institute Little Rock Chapter, Little Rock, AR (April 2007).

“Cross Cultural Project Management,” Project Management Institute Global Congress, Seattle, WA (October 2006).

Monographs published:

Don Diffine through the Belden Center

“2007 American Incentive System Almanac – A Daily Chronicle of Enterprise” (Nov 2006).

“High Octane?  The Anatomy and Physiology of Energy Crises” (Nov 2006).

“Dollars & Saints: Shall Capitalism and Christianity be Friends or Foes?” (Nov 2006).

COBA in London / Summer of 2007

The College of Business Administration visits England each summer. This program is designed for COBA undergraduate students in their junior or senior year. Utilizing business faculty, the curriculum as well as the activities and travel focus primarily on our global view of business in London, the world’s financial and commercial center. This exciting opportunity for COBA students is another means of fulfilling our mission of preparing Christian business professionals for lives of service. The summer of 2007 had an exciting time under the leadership of Mike Emerson and Allen Frazier. We already have a group ready to travel overseas for the summer of 2007.

COBA Faculty:
Mr. Mike Emerson, Associate Professor of Acct
Dr. Al Frazier, Chair of Management Program

Courses offered:

IB 325: Global Business Environment (3-6 hrs)
MKTG 430: Strategic Policy (3)
HUM 201: International Studies (3) HUM 270: European Civilization & Humanities (2-6) BMIS 280: The World Christian (2-3) BRES 361: Research in Textual Studies (1-4)

Undergraduate students attending COBA at HUE are required to sign up for 9 hours of credit. Students may sign up for more hours at additional cost. Note that all of the global requirements can be met through COBA at HUE.

Activities and Travel:

Field trips to businesses:

• Tate and Lyle
• Wimbledon
• Regions Business School
• BBC
• Edward Jones
• Asda
• Conoco Phillips

Field trips to cultural sites:

• St. Paul's Cathedral
• Westminster Abbey
• Houses of Parliament
• British Museum
• Buckingham Palace
• Trafalgar Square
• Globe Theater

Other Opportunities:

• Opportunity to attend concerts and shows in West End Theater District
• Extended travel group trips to Scotland and Ireland
• Daytrips to Stonehenge, Oxford, and Cambridge
• Free travel during semester for weekend trips such as Paris
• Free travel at conclusion of semester for Europe

Application: Application of admission to COBA at HUE must be made through the International Programs Office under the direction of Dr. Jeffrey T. Hopper. Applicants must be students in COBA with a minimum of 2.0 GPA on 27 semester hours. There is a $200 non-refundable application fee.

Further Information: Contact any of the COBA faculty or the International Programs Office at (501) 279-4529, HU Box 10754, located in the Sears Honor Center on the Harding University campus.

Harding University
College of Business Administration
915 E. Market Street
HU Box 10774
Searcy, AR 72149-0774

2006 COBA Alumnus of the Year:   

Brian TréusDell

Professional: 1999 – Present:

CEO TréusDell Salon & Spa Three Full-Service Day Spas in San Antonio, Texas 2004 – Present CEO Huebner Real Estate Company Manage Commercial Properties 1984 – 2001 CEO Lasergraphics Commercial Printing and Graphic Design Company Sold the company in 2001 1991-1998 CEO GNC Vitamin Stores Franchisee Oversaw the operations of six GNC vitamin stores. Sold the company in 1998

Education: BBA Marketing With Emphasis in Management – Harding, Unv.

Awards & Honors: President's Award Rotary International Lead Two Rotary Group Study Exchanges to Europe Most Profitable Small Commercial Printer NAQP Director of GNC Franchisee Association N Texas Director of GNC Franchising N. Texas Advertising

Family: Married to Diane (Stewart) TréusDell, Texas Tech. Brian & Diane have one beautiful child, Julian Claire age 4

Activities: Member Preston Road Church of Christ since 1991 Sunday School Teacher Thailand Missionary Support Team Hope Ministries Support Team Russian Missionary Support Team Enjoy: Spending time with Diane & Julian, Reading books to Julian…”The Peanut Butter Rhino” is her favorite, Traveling, Studying WW2, and Exercising

Senior Ethics Seminar:
The Senior Ethics Seminar is a long-standing tradition celebrating our seniors and better preparing them for lives of service. The primary goal of this seminar is to provide a strong focus on the ethical climate of today’s business world. The 2006 seminar was held on November 9th with Don Soderquist as the featured speaker.  Don Soderquist, a driving force behind the rise of Wal-Mart, was vice chairman and chief operating officer, and ultimately senior vice chairman, as the company grew to become the largest in the world.

The seminar also included a reception for the COBA seniors and a formal dinner with the ASI program at 6:00. Other activities of the seminar included analysis of business ethics scenarios, focus on scriptures, introduction of faculty, door prizes, various video clips, as well as an introduction by President David Burks, the founder of the Senior Ethics Seminar about 30 years ago. Based on reviews from the seniors, the seminar was a tremendous success this year.

Business Club Cookout:

With assistance from the American Marketing Association, the College of Business Administration holds its 5th annual Business Club Cookout during the 2nd week of each fall semester. The purpose of the event is to increase fellowship between students and faculty and expose our eight different business clubs within COBA to our students. The COBA faculty and staff cooked the hamburgers and hotdogs with all the fixings in front of our Mabee business building.  After the meal, each business club delivered a presentation to prospective members outlining their plans for the coming year and encouraging involvement.  This event is a great way of kicking off our year and increasing involvement in our business clubs.

Leadership Seminar:

COBA holds its annual Leadership Seminar, a 3 credit hour course, during the Fall semester of each year.  With the background of Big Cedar Lodge in Branson, MO, several alumni and business leaders are utilized to teach leadership. With an agenda of speakers, discussions, presentations, and other exciting activities, the leadership seminar provides our students with a challenging opportunity to mold and direct their leadership potential in areas of business, community, family, and church. The students stay in cabins along the lake and utilize the Big Cedar Lodge facilities for classroom, outdoor activities, and other events. Our speakers for the 2006 Leadership Seminar included alumni and selected faculty from Harding University with diversified leadership experiences:

Brant Bryan, Private Investor, CRESA Partners
Paul Carter, former president of Wal-Mart Realty
Dr. David Burks, President of Harding University
Joan Bell, Vice-President of First Federal Bank of Arkansas
Jeff Hearn, Enterpeneur and Owner of several companies
Bryan Burks, Dean of COBA
George Oliver, Management Professor
Mike Emerson, Accounting Professor
Rhonda Bell, Chair of Health Care Management Program
Al Frazier, Director of Leadership Seminar and Chair of Management Program

We’re excited about this opportunity to closely work with some of our senior business majors in this type setting. Over the years, this seminar has become a highlight for seniors.

COBA Graduation Reception:
COBA hosts a reception for our graduating seniors and their families every May and December.  Hosted in our Mabee Building lobby, these receptions provide an excellent opportunity to visit with our students and their families before they leave Harding. We wish God’s richest blessings upon these graduates as they continue their lives of service in their respective careers.

Advisory Board:
COBA established our advisory board in the fall semester of 2003.  The purpose of this group is a purely advisory role to assist the COBA executive committee in directing the future of COBA. In addition, the advisory board members will assist in locating firms to recruit COBA students (both full-time and internships), promote the name of Harding and specifically COBA, and assist in providing feedback for our programs. We had seven alumni accept this responsibility for our first advisory board and we are excited about their future service to COBA and our students. The current ten advisory board members are as follows:

Ryan Blickenstaff ’88 alumnus Nashville, TN
Corporate Controller, Homeland Security Corporation
Personal Bio: Ryan’s previous work experience included 11 years at Nortel Networks located in Nashville, TN. He progressed from senior financial analyst of consolidations, to controller of processing services, to liaison of Perot Systems, an outsource arm of Nortel’s four computing platforms with the challenge of reducing overall platform costs. Ryan’s initial work experience was at Ernst & Young in Little Rock upon graduation from Harding University. Following E&Y, Ryan graduated from Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University where he obtained his MBA in finance and graduated in the top 15% of his class. Ryan, his wife Beth, their two children, Baylor and Belle, attend the Brentwood Hills church of Christ.

Brant Bryan ’77 alumnus Dallas, TX
Private Investor, CRESA Partners
Personal Bio: Brant is a founding leader of CRESA Partners, specialist in creative and efficient financing of facilities through leasing, purchases, joint ventures and other financial structures. His previous experience was at The Staubach Company where he provided both financial and real estate leadership for projects of major corporations throughout the country, including Phillips, Sun Microsystems, Cisco Systems, CVS Drugstores, Chiron, Genentech, Texas Instruments and 7-11. After graduating from Harding University, Brant was Harding’s first student to graduate with an MBA from Harvard University. Brant and his wife, Melita (’79), attend the Richardson East church of Christ. They have five children of which 2 are current students at Harding (Jonathan and Lauren). See story below Brant Bryan Adjunct Lecturer.

Brooks Davis ’89 alumnus, Searcy, AR
President of Simmons First Bank of Searcy
Personal Bio: Brooks Davis was named president and CEO of Simmons First Bank of Searcy in 2001. Davis joined Simmons Bank of Searcy in 1995 after working five years for First National Bank and Trust (now Arvest) in Rogers, AR. He has been heavily involved in the Searcy community over the years through his roles in Kiwanis Club, Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of Searcy Leadership Institute, White County United Way Board, Harding President’s Council, past-president of Harding Bison Booster Club, and past-president of Downtown Searcy Association. Davis and his wife Jill (Smith) have three children, Jace, Trey, and Ally. He is a member of the College church of Christ where he serves as deacon of prayer ministry, as well as an adult bible class teacher.

Dave Finley ’87 alumnus Highland Village, TX
CEO, L.E.A.D.S. On-line
Personal Bio: Dave Finley is the president and CEO of l.e.a.d.s. online, a web-based investigation system enabling law enforcement investigators to solve crimes. The company is currently the nation's largest online investigative system currently being used by law enforcement agencies to solve crimes involving property - from burglary to homicide, arson, identity theft and narcotics crimes.

Dave received his Bachelor’s degree in Business from Harding University and went on to get his Masters in Management from the University of Dallas and his MBA in Finance from Texas A&M University. Before joining l.e.a.d.s. online, Dave helped lead a publicly traded company in the Silicon Valley to 60,000 subscribers and 350 employees. The organization exceeded Wall Street’s estimates and was purchased by DIRECTV in 2001. Dave also supports the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) program as an advocate for children who find themselves in the court system through no fault of their own. Dave and his wife, Deb, have two children. They live in Dallas, Texas.

Jeff Hearn ’82 alumnus Harrison, AR
Owner/Manager of several H& R Block Financial Services and Radio Shacks
Personal Bio: Graduating from Harding in 1982 with an accounting degree, Jeff has demonstrated his entrepreneurial spirit through his numerous business endeavors over the years. He purchased his first H & R Block office in December 1985 in Harrison and has since opened seven additional HRB offices in Arkansas, Missouri, and Colorado. He is Chairman of the Board of The North Star Companies, a diversified holding company of 12 different franchises. He has developed real estate for residential subdivisions and has a controlling interest in a large U-Haul franchise, owns three Radio Shack franchises, A Plus Computers Inc., and is a Tom’s Foods franchise owner serving 10 counties in AR and MO. He is an avid investor of commercial and residential real estate including a number of apartment buildings, and has purchased over 700 storage units in AR. He also owns an aircraft leasing company in northwest Arkansas. He and his wife, Cyndie, have two children, Rebekah and Hannah, and are members of the Northside church of Christ where he has served as deacon for many years.

Jim House ’66 alumnus Searcy, AR
President, CEO of USAble Life
Personal Bio: Jim has held the title of President and Chief Executive Officer since 1985. Prior to that, Jim had a distinguished career with Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield as a sales representative beginning in 1967. He received promotions through his career to Regional Sales Manager, General Sales Manager, Vice President of Marketing, and later Executive Vice President. Jim serves on the Board of Directors for numerous organizations such as Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce, Junior Achievement of Arkansas, and Arkansans for Drug Free Youth. Jim has served as an adjunct professor for Harding on numerous occasions over the last 15 years. Jim was award the COBA Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1991. Jim and his wife, Sue (’70), attend Downtown church of Christ where he serves as a deacon. They have three children, Matthew, Ashley, and Jordan, all graduates of Harding University.

Paul Maynard ’87 alumnus Minneapolis, MN
Partner, Deloitte Touche
Personal Bio: Paul resides in Woodbury, Minnesota with his wife, Robin (Ross and HU class of '87) and three children Allie (10), Matthew (4), Jacob (2). Paul is a partner at Deloitte and Touche where he is the national account leader for several companies including Cargill, General Mills and Land O' Lakes. The Maynards are active in the Woodbury Church of Christ where Paul is a deacon, small group leader, bible class teacher and worship/song leader. Paul is involved with community organizations such as Flaming Pine Youth Camp (a non-profit summer youth camp) and Friends of FANA, Minnesota (adoption and orphanage support). Paul is active in politics at the national level as a part of President Bush's national fundraising team and at the local level where he served as the grass-roots coordinator for the Bush Campaign in Woodbury and as a part of the fundraising team for Congressman Mark Kennedy.

Todd McCullough ’84 alumnus, Franklin, TN
Managing Director and CFO of Doblin, Chicago, IL
Personal Bio: soon

Donnie Miller ’71 alumnus, Searcy, AR
President of Regions Bank of Searcy
Personal Bio: soon

Mona Plyler ’77 alumnus Tuscaloosa, AL
Advertising and Sales Promotions Manager, Phifer Wire Products, Inc
Personal Bio: As a Public Relations major from Harding, Mona has taken her high energy and enthusiasm to work for Phifer, an international industrial textile manufacturer with locations in Korea, Italy, California, and Florida. She has been heavily involved in her community through the Tuscaloosa League of Business and Professional Women, West End Christian High School Alumni Association, Guatemala Partners of America, Tuscaloosa Ad Club, American Heart Association, Alabama and Tuscaloosa CattleWomen Association, Alabama Girl State Counselor, and United Way. She has also been heavily involved at Central church of Christ where she and her husband, Mark, attend.