Ethics scholars named Affiliate Faculty at Bob Graham Center
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Drs. Michelle Darnell and Brian Ray, Co-Directors of the Elizabeth B. & William F. Poe, Sr. Center for Business Ethics Education and Research, were appointed as Affiliate Faculty at UF’s Bob Graham Center for Public Service.
The Graham Center’s Affiliate Faculty are chosen because of their record of mentoring student research projects and their support of undergraduates engaged in campus and community outreach. Former Governor and U. S. Senator Bob Graham founded the Center in 2006 as a place where students, from all academic disciplines, could acquire the skills and knowledge to become informed and engaged citizens. Affiliate Faculty make it possible for the Graham Center to achieve its mission on campus and in the community.
“Michelle Darnell and Brian Ray were selected as Bob Graham Center Affiliate Faculty because of their extraordinary dedication to students,” said Dr. David Colburn, Director of the Graham Center. “Their willingness to serve in this capacity will strengthen the center’s visibility on campus and its commitment to enhancing the student experience at UF.”
Dr. Ray has spent the past 20 years at the College, including the previous 17 years as Director of the Heavener School of Business. He was vital to the School’s growth, leading innovative initiatives in academic programs, career and leadership, international education, and distance learning. Dr. Ray has been recognized by UF with the Mort Wolfson Faculty Service Award in 2011, which recognizes a faculty member who “exemplifies commitment to students through advising and teaching,” and the C. Arthur Sandeen Award in 2013, given to a faculty member “whose efforts and service have made UF a better place for all students.”
Dr. Ray also serves as a Colonel in the Army Reserve. He recently received a Master of Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. The degree is the highest level of professional military education.
Dr. Darnell is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Management with a focus in business ethics. She has been recognized repeatedly for her exemplary teaching since joining the College in 2010. Dr. Darnell received the 2015 Judy Fisher Teaching with Technology Award, which is given annually to the Warrington professor(s) whose teaching best exemplified the use of technology over the past year. In 2014, she was named the College’s Undergraduate Teacher of the Year.
Dr. Darnell also serves as the faculty advisor for the Heavener School of Business’ Ethics Ambassadors, and manages other ethics initiatives within the Poe Center.
The Poe Center seeks to increase student awareness of the importance of ethics in their personal and professional lives. Through graduate and undergraduate classes, and through its activities and programs, the Center provokes thought and discussion of business ethics. As a result, Warrington students possess the communication skills necessary to succeed in any business environment.