NEW ORLEANS – Dr. Steve Grice, Director of the School of Accountancy at Troy University, was named the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Faculty Member of the Year on Monday.
The annual award recognizes a faculty member from each Sun Belt institution who has a passion for teaching, engaging and inspiring students, while also separating themselves from their peers outside of the classroom by regularly supporting and displaying enthusiasm for the athletics department.
Each of the Sun Belt’s 12 institutions nominated a Faculty Member of the Year finalist. The conference’s Faculty Athletics Representatives, Student-Athlete Academic Directors and members of the Sun Belt Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) voted to select the overall recipient. The conference initiated the Sun Belt Faculty Member of the Year Award in 2019.
“We are proud to recognize these dedicated educators who play an important role in impacting the lives of our student-athletes. These faculty members help improve the trajectory of our student-athletes,” said Commissioner Keith Gill. “Congratulations to Dr. Grice and to each of the finalists. We look forward to celebrating them during our fall conference meetings in November.”
As the Director of Troy University’s School of Accountancy and the Botts Professor of Accounting, Grice earned the 2018-19 Outstanding Accounting Educator by the Alabama Society of CPAs.
“Dr Steve Grice is a scholar and role model for our students," Troy University Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins said. "He has been recognized at the state and national levels for excellence in teaching, research and service. The SBC could not have selected a more deserving person for this coveted award.”
In 2016, Grice was a gubernatorial appointment to the Alabama State Board of Public Accountancy, and he was assigned to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy Education Committee for 2019-20.
“I have had the awesome opportunity to serve as professor and academic advisor to many student-athletes,” Grice said. “Most of these student-athletes have gone on to outstanding careers in their chosen profession while some have excelled professionally in their sport.”
“Without exception, the personal qualities of our student-athletes that come to mind when I reflect on my experiences are integrity, dedication, discipline, strong work-ethic, courteous, grit, and respectful,” Grice continued. “It has been a joy to observe our student-athletes apply these qualities as they successfully navigate through their academic program while juggling the demands of being an NCAA athlete.”
“Majoring in accounting as a student-athlete can have its challenges, but along with those challenges always came a special word of encouragement from Dr. Grice,” wrote former Troy baseball player Trey Johns, who currently is a senior accountant for Carr, Riggs & Ingram. “He seemed to have a knack for spotting those students who needed to hear that what we were trying to accomplish was well worth it. From participating in intramural sports to appearing on your social media feed, Dr. Grice was known and loved by everyone.”
Grice holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and Business Administration from Troy University, a Master of Accountancy from the University of Alabama and a Ph.D. in Financial Accounting from the University of Alabama.
“Without question, my experiences with these young student-athletes have added a flavor to my academic career that is unmatched,” Grice said. “It has been an honor to play a small role in their lives.”
2021 Sun Belt Faculty of the Year Finalists:
Dr. Tatyana Ruseva
App State
Associate Professor, Government & Justice Studies
Dr. Tatyana Ruseva is an Associate Professor in the Department of Government & Justice at App State. Since joining App State in 2011, she has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in environmental politics, public policy, program evaluation and research methods. She directs the Master of Arts in Political Science Program and mentors graduate students across the program’s three concentrations: International Relations, American Government, and Environmental Politics and Policy Analysis. Ruseva serves on the Land Protection Committee for New River Conservancy and on the North Carolina Natural and Working Lands Stakeholder Group. Ruseva has been involved in collaborative, interdisciplinary research related to carbon markets. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Sofia University in Bulgaria and a Ph.D. in Public Affairs from Indiana University.
Dr. John Hall
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Associate Professor, Finance
Dr. John Hall is an Associate Professor of Finance in the School of Business at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, having just completed a 10-year term as the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies in the College of Business. He joined the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in August 1997 and teaches Financial Markets and Bank Management courses and coordinates the first-year experience course, Business Perspectives. Prior to taking on the administrative role, Hall worked with the Federal Reserve Board on developing examiner education materials and taught in their training program for many years. Hall holds a B.S. and MBA from Florida State University and a Ph.D. from Indiana University.
Kerri Bennett
Arkansas State University
Instructor, English
Kerri Bennett is an Instructor of English at Arkansas State University, where she has taught numerous first-year writing courses since 2009. She has also taught at the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville and at Black River Technical College. During her career at Arkansas State, she has been nominated for and received numerous honors and awards including the You Made a Difference Award, A-State Athletics Faculty Member of the Game, and the Disability Services Certificate of Appreciation. Bennett is a two-time alumna of Arkansas State, earning B.A. and M.A. degrees in English. She also holds a M.A. degree in Education from the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
Beth Johansen
Coastal Carolina University
Lecturer, Recreation & Sport Management
Beth Johansen joined Coastal Carolina University in fall 2015 as the Facility Coordinator of the HTC Student Recreation Center. In 2017, she began serving as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science. In 2020, Johansen transitioned to a role as Educator/Lecturer in Recreation Management. She teaches courses in the topic areas of leisure and wellness, recreation and sport management, and outdoor recreation to undergraduate students. She has been heavily involved in the Feel the Teal program, a service excellence and customer service training program. Johansen holds a B.S. in Sports Management and an M.P.E. in Physical Education and Athletic Administration from Idaho State University. In January 2021, she began pursuing a Ph.D. in Higher Education from Coastal Carolina University.
Dr. Jin-Woo Kim
Georgia Southern University
Associate Professor, Marketing
Dr. Jin-Woo Kim is Associate Professor of Marketing at Georgia Southern University. His current research interests include marketing strategy, advertising effectiveness, quantitative modeling, marketing-finance interface and service marketing. At Georgia Southern, Kim teaches principles of marketing, principles of advertising, services marketing and global marketing at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He has earned countless honors, including the T.J. Morris Jr., Faculty Award at the Georgia Southern College of Business in 2014. He holds a BBA and MBA from Sogang University in Korea and a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Arlington.
Dr. Allison Calhoun-Brown
Georgia State University
Senior Vice President, Student Success
Associate Professor, Political Science
Dr. Allison Calhoun-Brown is Senior Vice President for Student Engagement at Georgia State University. She spent more than a decade as Associate Vice President for Student Success and helped lead Georgia State’s pioneering work in deploying predictive analytics to support academic advising. She helped develop the Panther Retention Grant Program. Calhoun-Brown is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science. She graduated with honors from Oberlin College and earned master’s and doctoral degrees in Political Science from Emory University.
Dr. Ryan Simon
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Senior Lecturer, Chemistry
Dr. Ryan Simon has taught at both the high school and college levels for more than 20 years. At the University of Louisiana Lafayette, he has taught General and Organic Chemistry. As a high school teacher, he taught chemistry, physics and biology, while also coaching soccer and cross country. Simon holds a B.S. in Chemistry from ULL and a Ph.D., in Organic Chemistry from Louisiana State University.
Robert Williamson
University of Louisiana at Monroe
Instructor, Kinesiology
Robert Williamson is an instructor of Kinesiology in the School of Allied Health at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He has served as an athletic trainer, instructor and advisor at ULM for more than 35 years. He worked as an athletic trainer from 1983-2008, focusing on men’s basketball. Williamson’s teaching career began in 1988 and he continues to teach foundational undergraduate courses in the three concentrations of the Kinesiology Department: Sport Management, Exercise Science and Exercise Science Pre-Physical Therapy. He also serves as an advisor for student-athletes in the Kinesiology program. Williamson was honored in 2012 by the ULM Athletic Foundation with the Faculty Recognition Award. He also has been inducted into the Louisiana Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame. Williamson holds two degrees from ULM – a bachelor’s degree in Health and Physical Education and an M.Ed. in Administration and Supervision.
Allison Morrow
University of South Alabama
Instructor, English
Allison Morrow has worked as an instructor in the English department at the University of South Alabama for six years. She teaches composition and technical writing courses and also works to create instructions for faculty development. As a CompPAL Coordinator at USA, Morrow has helped to develop an embedded tutoring program to support basic writers. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English: Professional Writing and Public Discourse from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, a master’s degree in Composition and Rhetoric from the University of Central Florida and is currently working towards a Ph.D. in Instructional Design and Development from the University of South Alabama.
Ron Liggett
University of Texas at Arlington
Senior Lecturer, Economics
Ron Liggett has been a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Texas at Arlington since 1989. During his 32 years with UTA, he has lectured more than 300 courses and received numerous awards. Liggett has served as Assistant to the Chair of the department since 2015. Liggett, who was a baseball letter winner at Lamar, served UTA as Assistant Baseball Coach from 1987-99 and has been a member of the NCAA Compliance Committee. Liggett, who is a Certified Public Accountant, holds a BBA degree from Lamar University and an MBA with a concentration in Economics and Accounting from UTA.
Dr. Erica Nierth
Texas State University
Senior Lecturer, Biology
Dr. Erica Nierth has been a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Biology at Texas State University since 2011. She participates in multiple initiatives to improve undergraduate STEM education. She serves as faculty mentor for several student organizations including the pre-nursing student organization. Prior to returning to the classroom, Nierth researched estrogen signaling as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Houston Center of Nuclear Receptors. She holds a B.S. in Biology from Texas Christian University, a Master’s Degree from the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology at Tulane University. She also earned a doctoral degree from the Tulane Medical School, Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program where she investigated the role of rapid estrogen signaling in uterine fibroid disease.
About the Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is made up of 12 members: App State, Arkansas-Little Rock (Little Rock), Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Louisiana, Louisiana-Monroe (ULM), South Alabama, Texas-Arlington (UTA), Texas State and Troy.