Indiana Wesleyan names dean of business school
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A senior executive with the AAA Hoosier Motor Club and an alum of Indiana Wesleyan University has been named dean of the university’s DeVoe School of Business, Technology, and Leadership. Andy Hughes began his new role April 29.
As chief innovation officer of the 450,000-member central Indiana automobile association, Hughes helped spearhead strategy and innovations, including the launch of a mobile tire replacement program, a text-alert partnership that warns drivers of upcoming roadside repairs underway, and employee training and professional development.
”Dr. Hughes is the right person to lead the DeVoe School because of his real-world experience as a strategic and innovative business executive and his ability to translate industry needs into academic programs,” university President Dr. Jon Kulaga said in a news release. “We are looking forward to his positive impact on the business school.”
Hughes worked for 30 years at AAA, where during his tenure he helped lead a 100% increase in business line revenue and improved customer-service rankings, the university said.
“I am deeply appreciative of this opportunity to serve as the Dean of the DeVoe School of Business, Technology and Leadership and to work with my colleagues as we continue to re-imagine business education and its applications to today’s environment,” Hughes said in the release.
Hughes earned a doctorate in business administration and management from IWU in 2022. Earlier in his career, Hughes was a pastor at Zion Community Church of the Nazarene outside Bloomington.
The hire reflects the latest step by the university to refocus its approach toward business education through IWU-National & Global, the arm of the university that administers its online platform and 11 regional centers in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Over the next few months, the university said it will continue to recruit experts in business, marketing, technology and organizational leadership, develop new degree programs and forge key workforce partnerships.
“Dr. Hughes’s arrival coincides with our efforts to build on our deep history of online education success by re-calibrating the DeVoe experience for students seeking skills for today’s workplace and for employers who demand an innovative workforce,” Dr. Eileen Hulme, chancellor of IWU-National & Global, said.