Pictured, from left to right, Ellen Holmes Pearson, professor of history at UNC Asheville, Dr. Benjamin “Ben” Powell, associate professor in Appalachian’s Department of Management, and Katherine R. Saul, associate professor at North Carolina State University, are the 2019 Academic Affairs Faculty Fellows. UNC System image
Dr. Benjamin “Ben” Powell
Associate professor of entrepreneurship
Department of Management
2019 Academic Affairs Faculty Fellow
University of North Carolina System’s Division of Academic Affairs
“The Faculty Fellows … provide important perspectives on how to address specific issues and develop solutions that will have lasting impact on accelerating student success.”
Dr. Kimberly van Noort, senior vice president for academic affairs and chief academic officer for the UNC System
BOONE, N.C. — Dr. Benjamin “Ben” Powell, associate professor in Appalachian State University’s Department of Management, has been named one of three 2019 Academic Affairs Faculty Fellows by the University of North Carolina System. As part of the fellowship, he will spend one year researching academic affairs.
Now in its fourth year, the fellowship engages experienced faculty who are specifically interested in academic affairs issues. The program gives these faculty mentored learning opportunities and recruits them to enhance the effectiveness of the UNC System, both at the System Office and at the institutional level.
Powell serves on Appalachian’s advisory board for its learning management system and on the Walker College of Business online task force.
His research interests include entrepreneurship pedagogy, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, career paths of entrepreneurs, application of evolutionary theory to entrepreneurship and organization theory (inertia, interdependency, uncertainty).
Fellows are offered the opportunity to become familiar with System-wide, state and national challenges in public higher education. This year, the UNC System Office selected digital learning as the focus of the project and invited faculty from all 17 UNC institutions to apply.
The 2019 Digital Learning Project allows fellows to assist in introducing new strategies to the teaching and learning environment. They will investigate and chart opportunities for faculty to take advantage of new digital learning environments. The fellows will review the current literature, consult with teaching faculty across the System and the national higher education landscape, and will investigate and experiment with new technologies.
“The Faculty Fellows play a critical role in helping the UNC System Office respond to the needs of the universities and other institutions across the System,” said Dr. Kimberly van Noort, senior vice president for academic affairs and chief academic officer for the UNC System. “They provide important perspectives on how to address specific issues and develop solutions that will have lasting impact on accelerating student success.”
Open to all tenured faculty members with at least three years’ experience at a UNC System institution, Faculty Fellows are selected based upon the strength of their relevant experiences in their academic area — including teaching, research and leadership activities — and their input as to how they could support the fellowship project for that calendar year. Since its inception, 13 faculty from nine universities have participated in the program.
The other two 2019 Academic Affairs Faculty Fellows are Ellen Holmes Pearson, professor of history at UNC Asheville, and Katherine R. Saul, associate professor at North Carolina State University.
About Dr. Ben Powell
Powell, an associate professor of entrepreneurship at Appalachian’s Department of Management, holds an A.B. in chemistry from Princeton University (1988) and an MBA in general management from the Kenan Flagler School of Business Administration at UNC-Chapel Hill (1994).
Additionally, he earned his M.A. in applied economics and managerial science (2000) and Ph.D. (2003) in management from the University of Pennsylvania.
Before pursuing an academic career, he helped start Milliken & Company’s composite fabrics division and an environmental marketing research company in Bangkok, Thailand.
He taught as an instructor of entrepreneurship (2001–03) and assistant professor of entrepreneurship (2003–07) at the University of Alabama before joining Appalachian’s Department of Management faculty in 2007.
About the Academic Affairs Faculty Fellowship Program
The Academic Affairs Faculty Fellowship Program through the University of North Carolina’s Division of Academic Affairs offers a unique opportunity to become familiar with system, state and national challenges in public higher education. Fellows will assume responsibility for special projects, as well as participate in ongoing activities in the division. The primary goals of the programs are to enhance understanding of the complex landscape of public higher education, as well as the context for system-level decision making; contribute to systemwide activities and initiatives in service to the University’s 17 constituent institutions; and sharpen faculty expertise and extend faculty experience in university administration.
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About the Department of Management
The Department of Management offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs to prepare students for managerial responsibilities in today’s dynamic environment. Learn more at https://management.appstate.edu.
About the Walker College of Business
The Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University delivers transformational educational experiences that prepare and inspire students to be ethical, innovative and engaged business leaders who positively impact our community, both locally and globally. The college places emphasis on international experiences, sustainable business practices, entrepreneurial programs and real-world applications with industry. Enrolling approximately 3,000 undergraduates in 10 majors and 175 graduate students in three master's programs, the Walker College is accredited by AACSB International – the premier global accrediting body for schools of business. Learn more at https://business.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As the premier, public undergraduate institution in the state of North Carolina, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls more than 19,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
