Candidate Jennifer Percival speaks during her interview for the UTA College of Business dean position March 16 at the Science and Engineering Innovation and Research Building. Percival serves as a professor and dean at Bowling Green State University.
Jennifer Percival, dean of the Schmidthorst College of Business and professor at Bowling Green State University, presented her vision for the UTA College of Business dean position Monday at the Science and Engineering Innovation and Research Building.
The dean will lead the college’s strategic direction, support student success, help develop new academic programs and cultivate partnerships.
Her vision includes positioning the college as a nationally recognized hub for applied business innovation, workforce development and industry partnerships. Her vision would be guided by three main principles: student success and career mobility, faculty excellence and research with impact, and deep regional engagement and innovation.
“These three interact. They are an ecosystem. They are symbiotic. And without one of these pillars, the rest of them will become less impactful,” she said.
Percival has served as dean at Bowling Green State University for four years, where undergraduate enrollment has increased by about 20% and the incoming class grew by roughly 40%, she said.
Business schools are facing enrollment challenges and increasing competition as more universities recruit students, Percival said.
Percival said the next generation of students and their parents will be focused on the value of their degree and the career opportunities it provides.
“They want to get in, they want to get out and they want to get a job,” she said.
She highlighted the growing influence of artificial intelligence and how the technology is changing workforce demands.
Integrating real-world work experiences into coursework and helping students learn to work alongside AI as a partner will be critical as entry-level jobs evolve, Percival said.
“We have to rethink the way we are teaching, not just what we are teaching,” she said.
Many students believe jobs will be waiting for them when they graduate, but that will not be the case for all, she said. Colleges must help students better understand workforce transformation, economic pressures and competition so they are prepared for the realities of today’s job market.
Dallas-Fort Worth offers one of the most dynamic economic environments in the world and a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem, according to Percival’s presentation. It’s a location for Fortune 500 corporate headquarters, Texas Stock Exchange, rapidly expanding technology firms and more.
She said the diversity of the industries provides a strong opportunity for a business school, as it allows them to engage many sectors and apply their skills in real settings.
Focusing on workforce development, industry partnerships, interdisciplinary collaboration, flexible learning models and research will help create unique programs and work-integrated learning opportunities for students, according to her presentation.
“We’re going to lead into innovation, we’re going to lead into workforce development and we’re going to lead into industry partnerships,” Percival said. “We’re going to create an ecosystem that is self-sustaining.”
She highlighted the importance of supporting staff across different departments. Creating opportunities for staff to share their challenges, participate in decision-making processes and receive professional development guidelines helps improve college work, she said.
She said the college should become a place where industry professionals want to connect with students, bringing real-world projects into the classroom.
“What if all of our students, when they graduated, had completed at least five industry projects because companies were bringing those projects to you to your classes,” Percival said.
She said her commitment as a dean will be to expand opportunities for students, support faculty excellence and research, and build strong partnerships in the industry to strengthen the college’s national reputation.
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