March 2015

SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 9, 2015 - Santa Clara University is pleased to announce that Caryn Beck-Dudley, dean of the College of Business at Florida State University, will be the next dean of the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University. She will assume the post August 1.

A well-established scholar in employment law and the design of ethical organizations, Beck-Dudley has served as dean of two major business schools over the past 13 years. At Florida State University, she has developed a compelling strategic plan for the business college, expanded its entrepreneurship and analytics programs, established novel programs for veterans, and led an ambitious fundraising campaign for a new building.

Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business has 2,325 students, 170 faculty members, and 51 full- and part-time staff. The School offers bachelor’s degrees in seven majors, and master’s degrees in business administration—through evening and weekend programs—and in finance, information systems, and entrepreneurship with an emphasis on global innovation. 

“It is a pleasure to welcome Dean Caryn Beck-Dudley to Santa Clara University,” said Santa Clara University President Michael Engh, S.J. “With expertise across business, law, and ethics, she brings a remarkable record of strategic leadership, innovative program development, and fundraising success to the Leavey School of Business. Her extensive experience will be invaluable as Santa Clara University enhances its business curriculum and engagement with Silicon Valley.”

Prior to her current post at Florida State University, Beck-Dudley had served as dean, department head, and professor of management and human resources in the College of Business at Utah State University. She also taught at the University of Georgia Terry College of Business and the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. Before her academic career, she was an attorney in commercial and corporate law with Van Cott, Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy.

“I am thrilled to join the faculty, staff, and students at Santa Clara University's Leavey School of Business.” said Beck-Dudley. “The Leavey School has a long history of providing principled leaders for the business community. The fact that the Leavey School is located in Silicon Valley ensures innovation and creativity will continue at the forefront as we forge a new era in business education.” 

Serving her second term on the Board of Directors for the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), Beck-Dudley has chaired the Maintenance of Accreditation Committee where she reviewed hundreds of business schools at a variety of universities worldwide. She also has helped international universities strategically position their business schools through the AACSB Special Committee on Strategic Global Accreditation.

An active member of the local business community, Beck-Dudley serves on the Leon County Economic Development Council, the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, and the Knight Creative Communities Institute. She established Florida’s only leadership award to recognize those who have demonstrated a deep and unwavering commitment to the highest levels of integrity, ethical behavior, and principled leadership.

Dean Beck-Dudley will succeed S. Andrew Starbird, who has been dean for six years and will return to the faculty as professor of operations and management systems after a one-year sabbatical.

Dean Beck-Dudley graduated magna cum laude from Utah State University in political science. She received her J.D. from the University of Idaho College of Law, where she was on the moot court team and the editorial board for the Idaho Law Review.

About Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40 miles south of San Francisco in California’s Silicon Valley, offers its more than 8,800 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, theology, and engineering, plus master’s and law degrees and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. master’s universities, California’s oldest operating higher-education institution demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more information, see www.scu.edu.

About the Santa Clara University Leavey School of Business
The Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University began in 1923, and was one of the first business schools in the country to receive national accreditation. Its undergraduate business, MBA, and Executive MBA programs are consistently ranked among the top in the nation by BusinessWeek, U.S. News, Princeton Review, and others. The curriculum at all levels emphasizes the leadership role of business in creating prosperity within an ethical framework, as well as business responsibilities for social justice and sustainability in the global marketplace. For more information, see www.scu.edu/business/

Media Contact
Deborah Lohse | SCU Media Relations | dlohse@scu.edu | 408-554-5121