Oct. 13, 2011

Hira to retire as Business dean and remain on faculty

by Mike Ferlazzo, News Service

Labh Hira, who is in his 11th year as dean of the College of Business, has announced that he will retire as dean when his term ends on June 30. He will remain on the faculty as a professor of accounting.

Hira, the Raisbeck Endowed Dean, has led a period of tremendous growth and transition in the College of Business, marked by two of the most significant milestones in the college's history: the completion of the Gerdin Business Building and the creation of a Ph.D. program in business and technology.

He chaired the College of Business building planning committee, which oversaw the $25 million project to build the college's first stand-alone, state-of-the-art facility. It opened in January 2004.

The Ph.D. program began in fall 2009. Its implementation represented the final step in making the College of Business a comprehensive business program. The first class of Ph.D. students will graduate in spring 2013.

"The College of Business has a great story to tell. We should be proud of the many things that all of us, together, have achieved in recent years," Hira said. "The college is well positioned for a new dean to build on those accomplishments. The university is fortunate to have such strong leadership in president Geoffroy and president-designate Leath, who I know will conduct a successful search for the position."

Executive vice president and provost Elizabeth Hoffman has appointed Pamela White, dean of the College of Human Sciences, and associate provost Dawn Bratsch-Prince to co-chair the search for Hira's successor, which will begin immediately. Nominations should be sent to bhoffman@iastate.edu.

Surpassing the college's campaign goal

Hira worked to improve support for the college's faculty, students and programs through the university's recent capital campaign, generating just under $48 million for the college -- or nearly $6 million over its campaign goal. Under Hira, scholarship funds have increased from $149,000 in 2003-04 to $470,000 in 2010-11. The number of named faculty positions also increased from five to 27 during that time.

"I have enjoyed working with Labh as dean and value his outstanding leadership," Hoffman said. "During his tenure, the college has moved forward in many important ways. He has recruited and supported outstanding faculty, staff and students. He worked very well with alumni and significantly increased the number of privately supported faculty chairs, professorships and fellowships. He developed and launched the college's first Ph.D. program and saw the college's ranking improve dramatically. We wish him well as he transitions back to being a professor of accounting."

Leadership beyond the college

Hira's leadership has extended beyond his college. He recently served the Iowa Board of Regents as co-chair of the ISU presidential search committee. Hira chaired the search committees for the current deans of the colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences and of Engineering, and co-chaired the search committee for the current dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine. He is a co-chair of the review committee tasked this year with evaluating the effectiveness of the university's budget model.

"Labh Hira has been a tremendous dean and an outstanding university citizen," said president Gregory Geoffroy. "He has provided great leadership for the College of Business, and the college has significantly improved its academic standing nationally under his guidance. Many times, Labh has stepped forward to assume important leadership roles for the university, most recently, co-chairing the presidential search committee. I know he has delayed his retirement more than once for the good of the college and the university, and we are indebted to him for this exceptional dedication."

Hira joined the Iowa State faculty in 1982. He was appointed associate dean of the college in 1996, and senior associate dean in 2000. He served as professor and chair of accounting and finance from 1992 to 1996. He was named the college's interim dean in July 2001 and dean in July 2002.

Published by University Relations, inside@iastate.edu, (515) 294-7958, Ames, Iowa 50011.

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