Five new faculty joined Owen this year. With diverse backgrounds and experience, the new Owen professors combine teaching with research interests that include finance, marketing, accounting and labor contracting.
Nicholas G. Crain
Crain, assistant professor of management, served as associate professor of naval science at the University of Idaho and as a division officer in the U.S. Navy aboard the USS Augusta, a nuclear-powered submarine. His dissertation, “Career Concerns and Venture Capital,” was named runner-up for the London Business School’s 2012 Coller Ph.D. Prize. His research interests include venture capital, private equity, corporate finance and initial public offerings.
Kelly L. Haws
Associate Professor of Management Haws studies consumer behavior, with a particular focus on issues related to consumer welfare. Previously, she was assistant professor of marketing and Mays Research Fellow at Texas A&M University’s Mays Business School. Her research considers self-control strategies, optimal consumption, measurement issues, and behavioral pricing.
Catherine F. Lee
Assistant Professor of Management Lee studies political influence on financial statements, particularly with regard to the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004. Formerly, Lee worked for JPMorgan Chase & Co. as a finance and accounting analyst and as an investment banking associate in renewable energy. She is interested in political influence, decisions around financial reporting, regulation and standards setting, managerial incentives, the effect of taxes on business decisions, and risk management. For more information on Lee, visit vu.edu/lee-newfaculty.
Michael D. Stuart
Stuart, assistant professor of management, is a certified public accountant who worked as an audit manager at Mayer Hoffman McCann and as an audit senior at Ernst & Young. Stuart’s work on the relation between CEO inside debt holdings and the riskiness of firm investment and financial policies appeared in the Journal of Financial Economics. His research interests include financial reporting, executive compensation, capital markets and corporate governance.
Edward D. Van Wesep
Associate Professor of Management Van Wesep studies the theory and practice of labor contracting, including the design of teacher contracts and performance measures. He worked as a business analyst at Capital One Financial Corp. and an associate at McKinsey & Co., and has entrepreneurial experience as a co-founder of the specialty finance firm Risk Allocation Systems. His research covers contracting, compensation, finance, game theory, microeconomics, and political economy.
Dean Eric Johnson noted that the new faculty bring important research and teaching skills to Owen. “The research our professors undertake has an important impact in the classroom—as well as the real world of business and organizations,” Johnson says. “I look forward to the contributions our newest professors will make.”
