Dr. Dianne H.B. Welsh and Dr. Charles H. Matthews receive top individual awards

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA, UNITED STATES, January 22, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ — The United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) presented Dianne H.B. Welsh, PhD, with the Max S. Wortman, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship and Dr. Charles H. Matthews with the USASBE Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award as part of the USASBE 2024: Forging the Future Together annual conference held in Birmingham, Alabama, in January.

Max S. Wortman, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship
Dr. Welsh is the Hayes Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. She is a known scholar in entrepreneurship, family business, and franchising. She is past president of the Small Business Institute^®, past division chair for the Technology and Innovation Management Division of the Academy of Management, and past president and Justin G. Longenecker Fellow of USASBE. Dr. Welsh was also invited by the United Nations to present the keynote address on Women and Entrepreneurship and served on the first NC Innovation Council. In addition, she served as a Presidential Appointee to the USAF Academy. Dr. Welsh was the architect of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Entrepreneurship Program and founder of both the Southern Entrepreneurship in the Arts Conferences in Tampa, Florida, and Greensboro, North Carolina. Dr. Welsh has published 130 journal articles and eight books, including the go-to book for cross-campus entrepreneurship programs, Creative Cross-Disciplinary Entrepreneurship.

Jill Kickul, professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, presented the award to Dr. Welsh at the conference. “Dianne has been a prolific researcher, educator, and program builder for our discipline,” Kickul said. “The range of courses she has taught both locally in her community as well as internationally is astounding.”

Established in 2004 and presented annually, the Max S. Wortman, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship is the organization’s highest individual honor and recognizes a deserving individual or organization for a career spent consistently and enthusiastically pursuing the highest of entrepreneurial ideals via academic study, pedagogy, or venture creation. Previous award winners include GMF Academic Advisors, LLC’s Dr. Geralyn McClure Franklin (2023); Indiana University’s Dr. Donald (Dr. K) Kuratko (2022); Wake Forest University’s Dr. Pat Dickson (2021); and Babson College’s Dr. Patti Green (2020).

USASBE Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award
Dr. Matthews, distinguished teaching professor of entrepreneurship and strategy, Department of Management, at the University of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College of Business, was presented the USASBE 2024 Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award.

“We have known Dr. Matthews and considered him both a colleague and a friend for more than three decades,” said Dr. Geralyn McClure Franklin, 2023 winner of the Max S. Wortman, Jr. USASBE Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship, who, along with Dr. George T. Solomon and Dr. Jeffrey R. Cornwall, nominated Dr. Matthews for this award. “Much of our own successes as entrepreneurship educators are due to the support and influence of people like Dr. Matthews through our involvement with USASBE. Even before our paths crossed professionally and personally, we were well aware of his contributions to entrepreneurship education.”

Dr. Matthews is an internationally recognized scholar and innovative teacher in the entrepreneurship field. He has been recognized with the George Barbour Award for Good Student-Faculty Relations, University of Cincinnati (2022); the Lifetime Achievement Award, International Council for Small Business (2019); and a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Research & Teaching Fellowship (2018). Dr. Matthews is also a past president of USASBE and a USASBE Justin G. Longenecker Fellow.

He founded the UC Center for Entrepreneurship in 1997.

The USASBE Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award is given to excellent educators who demonstrate a significant leadership role in promoting entrepreneurship through their work and contributions to the field. First awarded in 1993, past Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year honorees include Florida State University’s Dr. Eric Liguori (2023), Babson College’s Dr. Heidi Neck (2022), MIT’s Dr. Bill Aulet (2021), and Georgetown University’s Dr. Eric Koester (2020).

“It is such a thrill to see Dianne and Chuck receive the rightly deserved recognition via these awards,” said Julienne Shields, CEO of USASBE. “They are outstanding in the field of entrepreneurship education, bringing innovative thinking and inspiration to many aspiring entrepreneurship educators and students.”

Mark your calendars for the 2025 USASBE conference, February 12-15, at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.

About USASBE
Founded in 1981, the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) is an inclusive community of educators, researchers, and entrepreneurs advancing entrepreneurship education through bold teaching, scholarship, and practice. Membership is open to all, as is attendance at USASBE’s hallmark annual conference. USASBE also publishes a peer-reviewed academic journal, Entrepreneurship Education & Pedagogy, and develops a variety of helpful resources and professional development opportunities for entrepreneurship educators as they create a positive impact. For more information, visit USASBE.org or contact USASBE CEO Julienne Shields at [email protected].

Julienne Shields
USASBE
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