Melvin Stith left Syracuse on Wednesday for Chicago, where the first Ph.D. Project Hall of Fame ceremony will be held Thursday.

Stith, who is in his seventh year as dean of the Martin J. Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University, is one of four business professionals being recognized for their work with the Ph.D. Project.

‘I feel very special by being in this class, and I feel special being a part of something that started from an idea and has grown to be so much,’ he said.

The Ph.D. Project, founded in 1994, is an organization that aims to increase the diversity of corporate America by increasing the diversity of business school faculty, according to its website. Stith, who is black, got involved with the Ph.D. Project when it began. He said he got involved because he noticed a lack of diversity within the doctoral community.

‘Something was wrong with the picture,’ Stith said.

Stith’s work with the Ph.D. Project helped triple the number of minority business school professors in the country, said Randy Elder, senior associate dean in Whitman.

‘Our motto was if we diversify the front of the classroom, we will diversify the back of the classroom, and more students of color will start coming to business school,’ Stith said.

Bernard Milano, founder of the Ph.D. Project, said the organization aims to diversify business school faculty so that business schools can both attract minority students to study business and better prepare students for the diversity of the workplace.

‘Principally, you can’t be producing today and tomorrow’s graduates in an environment that’s not reflective of what they’re going to experience in life or in the work place,’ Milano said.

Milano said the Ph.D. Project’s newly founded Hall of Fame is the organization’s way of recognizing those who have helped make the Ph.D. Project successful. The Hall of Fame ceremony is the project’s way of honoring and thanking the individuals.

Milano has worked with Stith for 20 years and said he considers him a close friend. Milano said it is Stith’s willingness to give up his time and talent to help others achieve their dreams that sets him apart as a dean.

‘He’s a combination of a great leader and also a very empathetic individual,’ Milano said. ‘He can sort out when a person is struggling, he can sort out when a person needs an ear, someone who will listen.’

Willie Reddic, a Whitman doctoral candidate, said he relied on Stith’s listening and counseling skills early in his graduate career when he had a difficult time adjusting to the academic setting.

‘I was pretty close to just deciding to leave,’ Reddic said. ‘He stepped in there, just like a father, and said it would be all right, let’s work through this, and sure enough, I decided to stay.’

Reddic said he admired the fact that no matter what else Stith has on his plate, he always puts his students first.

‘I can’t even highlight enough how much he cares about every student in Whitman, from undergrads all the way up to graduate students,’ Reddic said. ‘Nine times out of 10, he’ll probably know you on a first-name basis.’

In addition to caring about his students, Stith is a fun person to be around, said Elder, Whitman senior associate dean. Elder, whose office is right next to Stith’s, said he thinks people are surprised by the amount of laughter that comes from the dean’s office, Elder said.

 

Stith said he prides himself on his willingness to work hard, his collaborative management style and his ability to get people to support causes he believes to be important. Despite his strengths, there are still some things he’s working on.

‘It’s still hard for me to say no to people,’ he said, laughing, ‘but sometimes I have to do it.’

After being inducted into the Hall of Fame, Stith said he will continue to work with the Ph.D. Project, helping to increase minority representation within the doctoral community.

‘It’s incredible. I never dreamed when we started this conference that it would take on such a life,’ Stith said. ‘I see its future as very strong.’

mjfahner@syr.edu

Published on November 16, 2011 at 12:00 pm