McCoy College of Business announces 2025 awards

SAN MARCOS, Texas — The McCoy College of Business at Texas State University announced the 2025 recipients of college-level awards at its annual fall meeting for faculty and staff on Aug. 21.

Woods Research Award
and Olney Early Career Research Award

The Gary V. Woods Research Award and the Robert J. Olney Early Career Research Award are the two highest research honors awarded by the McCoy College. The Woods Research Award — chosen from among all tenured and tenure-track faculty, based on scholarly performance over the course of three years — went to Dr. Leyuan (Wendy) You, associate professor of finance and economics. The Olney Early Career Research Award recognizes the scholarly success of a faculty member early in their career; this year’s recipient was Dr. John Zhang, assistant professor of management.

Dean's Leadership Council Changemaker Awards

This year, the McCoy College of Business presented the Dean's Leadership Council Changemaker Award to four recipients: Jimmy Allen, director of the Center for Banking and Financial Services; Zachary Kelley, associate professor of instruction in information systems; Karen Serafino, administrative assistant III in the Department of Accounting; and Dr. Li Feng, professor of economics.

Ignite Award

The new Ignite Award honors individuals on committees and task forces whose exceptional work exemplifies shared governance at its finest. The inaugural Ignite Award went to McCoy College's AI Task Force or Task Force 4.0. The group consisted of Dr. Skip Anderson, task force chair and associate professor of marketing; Dr. Ju Long, professor of information systems; Maurizio Turri, assistant professor of instruction in management; Dr. Binod Guragai, associate professor of accounting; Dr. Yao-Yu Chih, associate professor of economics; Tim Hayden, CEO, Brain+Trust; Kimberly Conner, digital strategy lead, Division of Information Technology, Texas State University; and Brian Strachan, senior director, business operations, Dell Technologies.

Presidential Distinction Awards

At the university level, several McCoy College faculty members earned Presidential Distinction Awards. For research, awards went to Dr. Li Feng, professor of finance and economics; Dr. Lucian Visinescu, associate professor of information systems and analytics; Dr. Mikhail Sterin, associate professor of accounting; and Dr. John Zhang, assistant professor of management. For teaching excellence, awards went to Dr. Francis Mendez, professor of information systems and analytics; Dr. Jeffrey Todd, professor of finance and economics; Dr. Kyle Mao, assistant professor of accounting; and Dr. Fereshteh Zihagh, assistant professor of marketing. For service excellence, awards recognized Dr. Matari Gunter, associate professor of instruction in management; Dr. Holland Toles, professor of instruction in finance and economics; and Dr. Peiqin Zhang, associate professor of information systems and analytics.

College Achievement Awards

College Achievement Awards recognized 12 outstanding faculty members. For research, awards went to Dr. Rick Wilson, professor of marketing; Dr. Wendy You, associate professor of finance and economics; Dr. Iqbal Ahmed, associate professor of finance and economics; and Dr. Emily Zhu, associate professor of information systems and analytics. Awards for teaching honored Dr. Nate Cannon, associate professor of accounting; Dr. Masoud Moradi, associate professor of marketing; Dr. Muxin Zhai, assistant professor of finance and economics; and Dr. Shane Reid, assistant professor of management. For service, awards went to Dr. Eric Kirby, professor of management; Kathy Moffitt, professor of instruction in accounting; Dr. Derrek Schartz, assistant professor of instruction in marketing; and Emily Wiley, assistant professor of instruction in management.

Outstanding Graduate Faculty

The awards recognized outstanding faculty in each of McCoy College's graduate programs. The winners were Dr. Emily Wang, M.S. in Accounting and Information Technology (MSAIT); Dr. Christopher Proschko, Master of Accountancy (MAcy); Dr. Rasim Musal, Master of Business Administration (MBA); Dr. Jaymeen Shah, M.S. in Data Analytics and Information Systems (MSDAIS); Dr. Gail Zank, M.S. in Marketing Research and Analysis (MSMRA); and Dr. Emmanuel Alanis, M.S. in Quantitative Finance and Economics (MSQFE). The overall winner of most outstanding graduate faculty at McCoy College was awarded to Dr. Gail Zank, professor of marketing.

Years of Service

The following faculty and staff members were recognized for years of service at Texas State:

30 Years of Service

Dr. Dean Showalter, Finance and Economics

25 Years of Service

Dr. Robert Rutledge, Accounting
Chris Stampley, Digital Video Specialist

20 Years of Service

Dr. Francis Mendez, Information Systems and Analytics
Dr. Vance Lesseig, Finance and Economics
Dr. Kenneth Moon, Finance and Economics
Dr. Brian Miller, Management
Bobbie Moore, Management
Dr. Vishag Badrinarayanan, Marketing
Dr. Enrique Becerra, Marketing

15 Years of Service

Dr. David Wierschem, Associate Dean
Dr. Carolyn Conn, Accounting

10 Years of Service

Robert Wright, Information Systems and Analytics
Dr. Emmanuel Alanis, Finance and Economics
Dr. Matari Gunter, Management
Dr. Laura Jacks, Finance and Economics

For more information about this story or other news, email Twister Marquiss, director of marketing and communications for the McCoy College of Business, at twister@txstate.edu.

About the McCoy College of Business 
Established in 1970, Texas State’s business school officially became the McCoy College of Business in 2004 following a transformational gift of $20 million by Emmett and Miriam McCoy. The college, which offers classes in San Marcos, Round Rock, and online, is accredited by AACSB in both business and accounting, and has graduated more than 46,000 alumni.