Nicholson, Comprix and Harter named 2011 Whitman Professors of the Year

Amanda Nicholson, assistant professor of retail management in the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University, has been chosen as 2011 Undergraduate Professor of the Year. Joseph Comprix, assistant professor of accounting, and Don Harter, associate dean for masters programs and assistant professor of management information systems, were selected as 2011 Graduate Professors of the Year. The faculty members, who were selected by the student body, delivered remarks at Whitman School convocation ceremonies on May 14.

“Professors Nicholson and Comprix, and Associate Dean Harter demonstrate a true dedication to their students and to higher education. They embody the commitment of Whitman School faculty to motivate students to reach further, break barriers and exceed expectations,” says Whitman Dean Melvin T. Stith. “Amanda, Joe and Don are advancing research and knowledge in their fields and bringing that relevant experience into their classrooms. I am proud of their accomplishments and this recognition by the Class of 2011.”

Nicholson, who holds an M.S. from SU, spent 20 years in the retail management field before entering higher education, working for Marks & Spencer in London, and in a variety of department store management positions in Chicago. In 2010, she received an SU Teaching Recognition Award. Her research interests include the preparation of students with appropriate skills for industry, developing student leadership skills and the role of communications in the retention of retail employees. She is faculty adviser and Sam Walton Free Enterprise Fellow for the SU chapter of Students in Free Enterprise (SU-SIFE) and was recently named Sam Walton Fellow of the Year, a national recognition from SIFE.

Comprix, who previously taught at the State University of New York at Buffalo and Arizona State University, began his career as a staff accountant and accounting manager at Mead Corp. He holds a B.S. in finance from Ohio State University and a Ph.D. in accounting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Comprix’s research is focused on pension accounting, accounting restatements and International Financial Reporting Standards.

Harter, who spent nearly two decades with BDM International Inc., holds a B.S. in mathematics and M.S. in statistics and probability from Michigan State University, an M.B.A. from Ohio University and an M.S. and Ph.D. in information systems from Carnegie Mellon University. His research focuses on project management and software process improvement, examining the organizational benefits of process maturity on software quality, development effort and development time.