September
29, 2003
Konana Elected to Academy of Distinguished
Teachers
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AUSTIN, TX. - On Monday, Sept. 22, the University of Texas at Austin inducted Prabhudev Konana, an associate professor in the Department of Management Science and Information Systems, into the university's Academy of Distinguished Teachers. Konana, who has taught at the McCombs School of Business since 1995, received the honor reserved for elite teaching faculty alongside seven colleagues from across the UT campus.
At his induction ceremony, Sheldon Ekland-Olson, provost of the University, cited the words of a former student who wrote that, "Prabhudev personifies teaching excellence in three ways: passion, dedication and clarity."
"Professor Konana is a tremendous teacher and an outstanding researcher," said MSIS Department Chair Tom Shively.
Shively cited Konana as a prime example of how teaching and research can effectively combine to provide the best possible learning opportunities for students.
The specialist in information technology and electronic exchanges has received numerous teaching distinctions while at McCombs. In the spring of 2003, MBA students nominated him for best core class faculty and "Professor with Outstanding Ability to Connect Business and Academics." In 2001, MBAs elected him to the elective class honor roll. Konana has also received the El Paso Energy Foundation Teaching Excellence award (2002) and the Trammell/CBA Foundation Teaching Award for Assistant Professors (2000) at McCombs, among other distinctions.
Meanwhile, he has received numerous research awards. In addition to grants from Intel, Dell and IBM, he received major research funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to explore electronic exchanges, including a $500,000 NSF information technology research grant, earned with former McCombs colleague Sridhar Balasubramanian (now at UNC-Chapel Hill) and Balaji Rajagopalan of Oakland University, and a $300,000 NSF CAREER Award. The CAREER award is the NSF's most prestigious award for new faculty members. Primarily given to scientists, it is a rare distinction for a business academic.
Konana is currently the director of the undergraduate Management Information Systems program at McCombs. "He has done a great job revising this program to provide students a more well-rounded IT curriculum," said Shively.
Established in 1995, the Academy of Distinguished Teachers recognizes outstanding university teaching. New members are elected each year by a selection committee that includes current members, students, and other faculty who review nominations from college deans and department chairs. The provost makes all final selections.
The size of the academy is limited to 5% of tenured faculty at the university. Konana is the ninth McCombs professor to earn membership. His selection ties the School of Business with the College of Engineering as UT's academic unit with the most professors in the elite group.
For information on specific programs at the McCombs School, consult our contacts page. For media information, contact the Communications Director by phone at 512-471-3314 or by email at CommunicationsDirector@mccombs.utexas.edu.
