Dr. Thomas V. Schwarz is the new dean of Stetson University’s School of Business Administration, joining the university from California State University Fullerton, where he was the Rick Muth Family Endowed Chair in Family Business.

The new dean has extensive experience in both higher education and business and is recognized nationally and internationally as a leader in the fields of family business and entrepreneurship.

Schwarz arrived at Stetson in June and will focus on advancing excellence in the university’s undergraduate and graduate business programs. The School of Business Administration will soon begin a strategic planning process. The Dean’s Advisory Board of business executives will meet on campus later this month to assist in getting the process started.

He has named Dr. Betty Thorne, professor of statistics and director of Undergraduate Studies in the School of Business Administration, to his leadership team as associate dean. A Stetson faculty member since 1980, Thorne teaches in both the undergraduate and graduate programs and also in Stetson’s Summer Innsbruck Program in Austria.

“It is a great honor to serve as dean of the School of Business Administration (SoBA) at Stetson University, an outstanding institution with a rich history and growth trajectory that suggests an even brighter future,” Schwarz said.

“SoBA’s commitment to applied learning integrated with liberal studies addresses head-on executives’ recurring call for associates with increased abilities in critical thinking, effective communication, teamwork and related professional skills,” he said. “I was drawn to the School of Business Administration because of its commitment to this type of student learning and the dedication of faculty and staff to the development and future of our students.”

Schwarz held an endowed professorship in Family Business at Cal State Fullerton’s Mihaylo College of Business Administration for three years before joining Stetson. Before that he was director for nine years of the Family Owned Business Institute (FOBI) and the Center for Entrepreneurship at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Mich. Since 2002, he has also served as a visiting professor of entrepreneurship at the Athens University of Economics and Business, Decision Sciences Graduate Program, in Athens, Greece.

He earned a Doctorate of Business Administration in finance from Florida State University and also attended FSU for his MBA and undergraduate degrees. He completed post-doctoral studies in international business at the University of South Carolina and in family business advising at the Family Firm Institute.

Prior to joining Grand Valley in 2000, Schwarz worked in senior management and as treasurer for a family-owned manufacturing business and as an entrepreneur/owner of several other family firms. He taught finance at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and also held positions with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and in the futures industry in Chicago.

Schwarz succeeds Dr. Stuart Michelson, who is returning to the Stetson classroom in his position as the Sarah and Roland George Professor of Finance.