Keynote Speakers - Miami

Dr. Farrell Gean, Professor, Pepperdine University, CA

 Topic: Theoretical Constructs Critical To Understanding FASB Conceptual Framework

Dr. Farrell Gean is an Associate Professor of Accounting in Seaver College of Pepperdine University located in Malibu, CA. Professor Gean has been affiliated with Pepperdine as a full time faculty member since 1981.  He received his B.S. from Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. He received both his MBA and Ph.D. degrees from Georgia State University. He holds the Certified Public Accounting CPA license and the Certified Management Accounting CMA professional designation. Prior to joining Pepperdine University, Professor Gean taught two years at Lipscomb University. Prior to entering the academic world, he was on the audit staff of Ernst & Ernst, one of the big 8 international accounting firms. After mergers among professional accounting firms this firm is now known as EY being one of the big 4.  In addition to Dr. Gean’s teaching responsibilities at Pepperdine, his international consulting engagements have taken him to Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Switzerland, and Riyadh, Saudia Arabia. Most all these assignments focused on improving accounting controls. For about 5 years he prepared pro forma financial statements for the late Baron Edmond de Rothschild, a banker in Switzerland. All these consulting experiences enriched his classroom performance helping him to receive the first Luckman Distinguished Teaching Award at Pepperdine University.  Professor Gean has taught every accounting course in the undergraduate curriculum with his emphasis on advanced accounting and accounting theory. He has taught some MBA courses over the years which deal more with managerial accounting.  He makes presentations frequently at professional conferences. He also publishes regularly with most research addressing accounting pedagogy.

Keynote Speakers - Miami

Dr. Fred Petro, Professor, Pepperdine University, CA

 Topic: The Evolution of Electronic Devices and the Classroom Impact.

Dr. Fred Petro is Professor of Accounting who joined the faculty of Pepperdine University in the Fall of 1980. He received a B.S. and M.B.A. from the School of Accountancy, University of Southern Mississippi (1960, 1968) and Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas (1973).  He was a faculty member of the University of South Alabama College of Business and Management Studies-Department of Accounting  (1972-1980).

Dr. Petro has presented papers nationally and internationally and published in journals on a variety of managerial and financial topics. The focus of much of his research is on accounting pedagogy.  Specific areas include cash flow, the statement of cash flow,  earnings forecasts and forecasting projects. He has also served as a reviewer of both journals and books.  When Dr. Petro first joined Pepperdine University, he was the major voice in designing and implementing the undergraduate accounting curriculum, which exists to this day with only slight modifications.  This program has produced successful graduates who are in positions of senior management and partners in accounting firms worldwide.

Dr. Petro is a former cost analyst for Gulf Oil Corporation.  He is a former partner in the consulting firm of P. L. Petro and Associates.  Holding the professional designation, Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Dr. Petro has demonstrated keen insights into improving management decisions. Although his talents are recognized as a CMA, his first love is the classroom.  Most recently, he has focused his energy on the use of information technology to make the classroom learning  experience more effective and enjoyable.  Dr. Petro has won various teaching awards.

 Dr. John R. Wingender, Jr., Chair,  Creighton University, Omaha, NE

 Topic: Teaching Finance in China

Dr. John R. Wingender, Jr. is the Chairman of the Department of Economics and Finance and a Full Professor of Finance at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, USA.  He previously served as the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs at Creighton University.  He taught at Oklahoma State University for twelve years where he was named the Ardmore Professor of Business Administration.  In 1993 he was awarded a Fulbright grant to teach and to conduct research at the International Management Center, now the Central European University Business School, in Budapest, Hungary.  In 2005 he was a Fellow at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland in the Institute of International Integration Studies.  He is a Visiting Faculty member at Peking University in its Beijing International MBA (BiMBA) program since 2004.  He received his Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska in 1985.  He teaches managerial finance, international financial management, investment analysis, and portfolio management.

Dr. Wingender has published more than 40 articles in various refereed business journals, such as the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Journal of Banking and Finance, Management Science, Journal of Business and Economic Statistics, Journal of Financial Research, The Financial Review, and the Journal of Business Research.  He is an Editor of the Quarterly Journal of Finance and Accounting and an Associate Editor for the Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance.  He has served as the President of the Midwest Finance Association and of the Association of Business Simulation and Experiential Learning.  His research interests include the distribution of stock returns, the use of financial derivatives, counter cyclical hiring, and the decertification of unions.

Dr. Wingender is currently the Treasurer of the Creighton Federal Credit Union Board of Directors.  He serves on several non-profit boards.  At Creighton University he is the Faculty Advisor for the Financial Management Association (FMA) Student Chapter and the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity.  He has consulted internationally for many businesses such as Ernst and Young, Ely Lily, Coca Cola, Conoco Phillips, Dell Computers, and the World Bank, most recently conducting a Financial Analysis training program for Pfizer, China in Beijing.

Dr. Wingender has been awarded several teaching and research awards.  In 2008 he was honored with the Outstanding Teacher Award at the Beijing International MBA program from 2004 to 2008.  He has earned several national FMA Superior Faculty Advisor Awards.  In 2007 he was honored with the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Teaching Award, the top teaching award at Creighton University.  He won a similar award at Oklahoma State University in 1990. 

Dr. John (Ed) Knight is Professor, University of Tennessee at Martin

Dr. John (Ed) Knight is Professor of Management in the Department of Management, Marketing, and Information Systems at the University of Tennessee at Martin since 1971.  Professor Knight retired and relocated to Florida 3 years ago where he still teaches a full time on-line position with the same university.   Professor Knight received his B.S. I. E. , M.S.I.E, and Ph.D. from the Georgia Institute of Technology.  He was a licensed Professional Engineer in Tennessee and held multiple certifications from the American Society of Quality Control including Quality Engineer and Quality Manager.  During his 47 years of teaching, he was actively engaged in consulting throughout many Southern states and internationally in Japan.  As a faculty member at the University of Tennessee at Martin, he taught both undergraduate and graduate classes in operations management,  business statistics,  operations research,  quality control,  work measurement and improvement, and general management principles.  His consulting experiences related to business operations and productivity analysis.  For many years, he was the consulting plant industrial engineer for the Ferry Morse Seed Company in Fulton, Kentucky.  Based on these numerous consulting experiences, Professor Knight has presented many research papers related to actual (and theoretical) industrial applications.  Additionally, he has also served as an expert witness in several civil cases involved with paraplegia and the resulting implications in the life of a paraplegic. His research has also developed a fruitful area of research into evaluating writing through rubric development and evaluation.  His present research focuses on using design of experiments to determine the most important factors to significantly improve business writing styles.  He has published research articles in the Journal of Operations Management, The Production and Inventory Management Journal, the International Journal of Teaching and Learning, and The Business Review (Cambridge) among others.  Given his 45 years of service at the University of Tennessee, he also has served on numerous university and school committees and has been recognized as a University Scholar and received teaching awards for his efforts. 

Dr. Heather L Garten, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Worldwide

 Topic; The (se)XY-Generation: Bridging the Gap

Dr. Heather L Garten is assistant professor in the College of Arts and Sciences at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Worldwide.  She received her PhD in mathematics from Emory University in 2005, and her Bachelor’s from Stetson University in both Mathematics and Economics in 2000. While at the Department of Defense (2005-2011), she earned her Lean Six Sigma Greenbelt, completing the first Lean Six Sigma project at the National Security Agency (NSA) in addition to graduating a rigorous Applied Mathematics Program.

Dr. Garten is a member of the Center for Aviation and Aerospace Leadership (CAAL), and writes regularly for the CAAL blog.  Dr. Garten serves as an Expert on the Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) synthesis Practices in Developing Effective Stakeholder Relationships at Smaller Airports. Dr. Garten is an active member in the community, and is a member of the Rollins College Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership Center.  She was appointed as a speaker for the Ronald McDonald House charities in Orlando, FL, volunteers with the Orlando Science Center, and serves as the community outreach liaison for White House Black Market, Winter Park, FL.  Dr. Garten is often found baking exquisite, unique goodies for philanthropic events, and will be featured at the 2014 Orlando Science Center’s Neanderthal Ball.

 Dr. Garten has continually promoted growth through innovative education, speaking at over ten STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) conferences as Director of the Mathematical Sciences Program, a grant making program at the NSA.   Continuing her thirst for knowledge and empowering others, Dr. Garten founded and trademarked (se)XY STEM®: A STEM initiative that recognizes the value of collaboration through STEM, from fashion design to cooking to aeronautics.  The basis of (se)XYSTEM®, the XY-Generation Mentality, drives a large portion of her research emphasizing the new global paradigm that is emerging, predominantly due to the advances in technology and aerospace.  Dr. Garten refers to those who are creating this exciting paradigm as the (se)XY-Generation, and never misses an opportunity to present this subject to future leaders, of all ages.

Dr. Joseph C. Santora, Professor, ENPC School of International Management, Paris, France.

Dr. Joseph C. Santora is the Director of Research/Visiting Professor of Management, ENPC School of International Management, Paris, France. He has held several administrative/faculty positions in United States as well as visiting professorships and fellowships in Australia, Europe, Georgia, and Russia.  He received his doctorate from the Fordham University, and his Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from Seton Hall University. He  completed postdoctoral study at Harvard, Princeton and New York. Dr. Santora has consulted for some two dozen organizations and led two private organizations.  He has authored/co-authored more than 150 publications, of which several have received best paper awards, and he has presented paper at international conferences in 13 countries on four continents. He serves on eight academic journal editorial boards.

Dr. Bala Maniam, Sam Houston State University

Dr. Bala Maniam is a Professor of Finance and is the former chair of the Department of General Business and Finance at Sam Houston State University.  He received his doctorate from the University of Mississippi. His Masters and Bachelors degrees are from Arkansas State University. He has won numerous teaching awards, including Excellence in Teaching from Sam Houston State University, Excellence in Teaching from Association of Business Administration, and several more. He has also won the Excellence in Research at Sam Houston State University for his scholarly work. He has published over a hundred and twenty articles in journals. Similarly, he has won several service awards for his contribution to his profession.