Rutgers Business School Intensifies Commitment to Ethics

MBA Blog / 8th December 2017

The Institute for Ethical Leadership (IEL) at Rutgers Business School is proud to announce the formation of the IEL Research Fellows. The IEL Research Fellows are full-time faculty members of Rutgers Business School who do research and/or teaching in areas related to business ethics, leadership ethics, and corporate social responsibility. The eight fellows will meet regularly throughout the academic year to discuss their research, serve as advisers who shape the direction of research and other IEL activities, and contribute to the institute’s programs.

“The establishment of eight research fellows at the Institute for Ethical Leadership reflects Rutgers Business School’s long-standing emphasis on the study of ethics and its importance in the education and success of all business leaders,” stated Rutgers Business School Dean Lei Lei. “We look forward to hearing more about the work of the inaugural fellows and the impact their work will have on leadership development and corporate citizenship.”

Mike Barnett, one of the eight fellows and a former vice dean for academic programs, shared similar sentiments: “I’m honored to be a part of this great group of scholars and look forward to working together over the coming years to develop valuable insights into how to improve the important relationship between business and society.”

“The IEL research fellows program is an important step in building the Rutgers community of business ethics scholars,” added fellow Danielle Warren, “Through the fellows program, I look forward to expanding my knowledge of the cutting-edge research conducted by my colleagues and building upon their contributions in my own research and teaching.”

Joining Dr. Barnett and Dr. Warren are Chao-chuan Chen, Wayne Eastman, Jerry Kim, Tobey Karen Scharding, Chris Young, and Joanne Ciulla. Dr. Ciulla initiated this program as the new research director of the IEL. In January, she will become the director of the institute. She sees the fellows program as a first step towards creating a strong research focus at the IEL. Ciulla comes to Rutgersafter 25 years as the Coston Family Chair of Leadership and Ethics at the Jepson School of Leadership Studies, University of Richmond. Ciulla was one of the founding faculty of the Jepson School, which is the first liberal arts, degree granting, under graduate school of leadership studies in the world.

Before the launch of the IEL Research Fellows initiative, Rutgers Business School had already developed a reputation for taking business ethics seriously. In addition to hosting the Institute for Ethical Leadership research center, the business school has one of the largest contingents of ethics and CSR professors in a U.S. business school. Ciulla noted that “having eight full-time faculty teaching and doing research in the area of business ethics is quite large compared to other schools. We are very proud to have required, graded, and for credit business ethics courses in the undergraduate and graduate programs at RBS.”

The IEL will announce and post abstracts of the fellows’ work when they are published. For more information about the IEL Research Fellows and their work, visit http://www.business.rutgers.edu/iel/about-us/research-fellows .