School of Business Recognizes Faculty for Outstanding Contributions

This fall, the School of Business at St. John Fisher University recognized six faculty members for their outstanding contributions to teaching.

Dr. Sukruth Suresh was recognized with the STAR Award for Service Excellence which recognizes an individual who has generously shared their time and talents to serve both the School and the University. Suresh has served on various search committees, faculty assembly committees, and University ad hoc committees. In addition, he has played key roles in curriculum assessment and development. During his recognition, Suresh was admired for often volunteering and seldom saying no when asked to help, no matter how big or small the time commitment.

STAR Awards for Excellence in Teaching are selected using student input. This year, Dr. Carolina Safie-Robertson was recognized at the MBA level and Erica Sysol at the undergraduate level. 

Safie-Robertson demonstrates a commitment to continuous improvement to the art, science, and craft of teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. She stays current in her field, brings an innovative, engaging, and disciplined approach to teaching, and can be described as a continuous learner. She developed and piloted a timely special topics course in the MBA program that was such a success that it is being recommended as an added course in the MBA core. 

Sysol was recognized for her ability to relate to students and help them understand and appreciate a complex subject that many of our students may consider abstract or hard to grasp. She accomplishes this through an engaging, simulated business exercise that allows students to see first-hand how the underlying concepts apply to real-world business transactions. She also works to connect students with alumni and industry professionals. 

The Adjunct Faculty Karyl Mammano Excellence in Service Award recognized Amanda Coffey, who created a brand new course that has become a popular elective on industry best practices and the real-world application. Students cite that Coffey brings her own professional work experiences, guest lectures, and hands-on exercises into the classroom as highlights of their learning experience. She gives her time generously to help students succeed both within and outside of their course, helping students secure internships and permanent jobs following graduation.

Dr. Hemant Sashittal received the STAR Award for Outstanding Research for being a prolific scholar and impactful in advancing the bodies of knowledge in the marketing discipline. He has developed a distinguished publication record over his career, as measured not only by the number of publications but also the citation metrics. Last year, he had research in three ABDC journals, two conference proceedings, and was invited to give a keynote address.

The Cardinal Impact Award recognizes someone who consistently goes above and beyond in service to the School in ways that advance our mission and impact Fisher students and community. Dr. Hugh Lambert is known in the community, frequently cited by students and alumni as a favorite instructor, and actively engaged in service both within the School and across campus. During the past academic year, he published two papers, presented a paper, and was publicly recognized for teaching excellence.