August 2025 News & Updates | | A Year of Growth…A Future of Promise | | |
This year, Rutgers School of Business–Camden (RSBC) has made bold strides and meaningful impact. RSBC launched new programs in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Financial Planning, and Real Estate, while our first Business Honors cohort and global learning trips energized students’ experiences.
Further, faculty research gained national recognition, and mentorship programs helped students thrive. We introduced cutting-edge courses in AI and sales tools, expanded career support, and strengthened our role as an anchor institution.
Looking ahead, we are refining academics, growing lifelong learning pathways, and deepening alumni engagement. Explore the RSBC Impact Report to see how we’re shaping the future of business—together.
| | | Entrepreneurship and Innovation Major added to the Undergraduate BS Program Lineup | |
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Big news for aspiring innovators! Undergraduate students at RSBC now have the opportunity to pursue a new Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Recently approved by the Rutgers Board of Governors, this dynamic major is designed to prepare students to identify, evaluate, and manage entrepreneurial opportunities while building the strategic skills needed to launch and grow successful ventures.
The new program, previously approved by Dean Monica Adya, Chancellor Antonio D. Tillis, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Prabhas V. Moghe, and previous President Jonathan Holloway, strengthens Rutgers–Camden’s commitment to offering forward-thinking, real-world academic pathways for tomorrow’s business leaders.
Learn More
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Welcome to the New Director of SBDC at Rutgers–Camden:
Dr. Akeel Gaines
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In April 2025, RSBC welcomed Akeel Gaines as the new Regional Director for the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Rutgers School of Business–Camden. In this role, Akeel will report to the Dean of RSBC and the NJSBDC State Director.
Akeel brings over 21 years of leadership, operations, and logistics experience from his service in the U.S. Army, most recently as Chief Operations Officer. Akeel holds an Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership from Stockton University. He is passionate about community development and committed to helping others realize their full potential.
Akeel is leading an Entrepreneurship Summit on October 23, 2025, as a collaboration between SBDC and RSBC to support small businesses owners in our community. This event will also highlight how Rutgers students can engage with the SBDC to gain hands-on experience in entrepreneurship—bridging classroom theory with real-world application through impactful student projects and partnerships.
We are excited to have Akeel on board and look forward to the impact he will make at RSBC and in the community.
| | | RSBC Welcomes Five New Faculty | | This Fall, we are delighted to welcome four new faculty members across the areas of Accounting, Management, and Marketing. Drs. Huan, Pansari, Paul, and Qu faculty have excelled in their respective fields and bring with them years of experience, unique perspectives, and impactful research that will enrich our community. We are also excited that Dr. Schiro Withanachchi has joined our leadership team as our Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs. Learn more about our incoming faculty and leaders at the following link. | | Student and Alumnus Spotlights | | |
Student Spotlight
Carolina Guzman, a Business Honors student majoring in Marketing, chose RSBC for its abundant opportunities, strong reputation, affordability, and active campus life. As a commuter student, she’s embraced the challenge of building meaningful connections, guided by her personal motto: "every no gets closer to a yes." Her proactive mindset has already led to incredible experiences—including helping a Rutgers alum rent out an investment property and being selected for the prestigious Direct Effect Innovation Challenge in Nashville.
A passionate multitasker, Carolina balances school, work, and extracurriculars through time-blocking and prioritization. She’s currently involved in three student clubs and is planning a study abroad trip, pursuing a second internship, and studying for the LSAT as she works toward her goal of entering law school. Carolina also runs her own real estate business and aims to grow her network with five strong connections each semester.
Join us in wishing Carolina the best as she continues her journey!
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Alumnus Spotlight
Meet Guido Gallicchio, a proud RSBC alum from Washington Township, NJ, and current President of Thayer Distribution, Inc. As a former student-athlete and working undergraduate, Guido balanced it all with determination — and even met his future wife at Rutgers! He credits RSBC’s senior seminar and foundational courses in Accounting, Law, and Marketing with preparing him to successfully lead multiple companies.
Through his connections with RSBC, Thayer Distributuion has partnered with RSBC for the Corporate Partner Scholarship Program as well.
His advice? Work hard now so you can celebrate later. We are proud to have Guido in our RSBC family!
Best of luck with your future endeavors, Guido!
| | | Professional and Executive Education at Rutgers (PEER) Launches Partnership with Thayer Distribution | | | | |
In a wonderful example of how RSBC can work together to serve alumni, current students, and businesses in the regional economy, Dean Adya has recently deepened our relationship with Thayer Distribution, a family business that employs approximately 100 in the region. Thayer’s President Guido Gallichio is an RSBC alumnus and his wife, Georgia, is Chief Operating Officer and alumnae of Arts & Sciences. This partnership led to PEER developing and delivering two certificate programs on Core Leadership Skills and Excellence in Customer Service for 30 Thayer employees.
RSBC and Thayer have also partnered on providing internships opportunities to support Thayer’s workforce development, hosting Business Honors students for a site visit, and providing tuition discount for Thayer employees and their families.
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Faculty Awards
On April 28 this year, RSBC announced our annual Faculty Excellence Awards at our Student, Faculty, and Staff Honors Ceremony on Monday. These awards recognize our distinguished educators and researchers who embody the highest standards of academic and research excellence.
See the Awardees!
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Staff Awards
At our Honor’s ceremony this year, we also recognized the outstanding contributions of our staff. Their unwavering dedication and hard work are integral to the success of our school and the enrichment of our students’ experiences from application to graduation.
Read more here!
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Dr. Yuxiang Zheng
Assistant Professor of Accounting
We are proud to recognize Dr. Yuxiang Zheng for an extraordinary scholarly achievement. Within a single year, he published in three of the field’s most prestigious journals—Contemporary Accounting Research, Journal of Accounting Research, and Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. Publishing in even one of these journals is a significant milestone; accomplishing all three in the same year is a rare and remarkable feat in the discipline. This accomplishment reflects not only Dr. Zheng’s exceptional expertise and dedication to advancing accounting research, but also the strength of scholarship at RSBC. A summary and links to the articles can be found below:
Zheng, Y. (2025). Can investors learn from patent documents? Evidence from textual analysis. Contemporary Accounting Research, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1111/1911-3846.13036
This study shows that the textual information in patent documents plays a powerful role in how the stock market values innovation. Using a large language model (BERT) to analyze patent texts, the findings show over 30% of the variation in patent valuations—more than many traditional metrics. These texts also reveal important signals about a company’s future performance and stock returns, highlighting their untapped informational value.
Valentine, K., Zhang, J.L., & Zheng, Y. (2025), Strategic scientific disclosure: Evidence from the Leahy–Smith America Invents Act. Journal of Accounting Research. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-679X.12605
This study investigates how firms respond to rising technological competition following a major change in U.S. patent law in 2011. Companies strategically increase scientific publications in areas where they lag their competitors, aiming to block rival patents by making their innovations public first. This strategic disclosure appears effective, as competitors are more likely to have their patents rejected due to lack of novelty.
Zheng, Y., Xiao, Z., & Chu, Y. (Forthcoming). The industry expertise channel of mortgage lending. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. https://jfqa.org/2025/04/26/the-industry-expertise-channel-of-mortgage-lending/
This study shows that banks use knowledge from lending to businesses to make better mortgage lending decisions—a dynamic called the “industry expertise channel.” Banks lend more mortgages in areas tied to industries they know well, especially when borrowers are riskier. These mortgages contain richer information and perform better, suggesting that industry expertise improves loan quality.
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Dr. Wei Jiao
Assistant Professor of Finance
Dr. Wei Jiao recently published an article in Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, which is a high-quality journal on the Financial Times 50 List. The article describes that the international equity mutual funds in the U.S. have grown to manage $3.5 trillion in assets. These funds can outperform by actively rotating the country’s asset allocations. Country-rotation-linked outperformance is most evident during market downturns, as funds reduce exposure to country holdings ahead of poor subsequent market returns.
The full article can be found at: go.rutgers.edu/rc9q6ff
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Under the leadership of Dr. Rakesh Sambharya, Professor and Area Head, the nine faculty members of the Strategy, International Business, and Entrepreneurship (SIBE) area continue to thrive as a hub of academic excellence and innovation. Comprising nine distinguished faculty members, the SIBE area is actively engaged in producing high-impact research that spans a wide spectrum of topics across its three core disciplines of Strategy/Strategic Management, International Business, and Entrepreneurship.
We extend our sincere gratitude to the SIBE faculty for their unwavering commitment to academic excellence, student success, and the broader mission of the Rutgers School of Business–Camden. Their work continues to elevate our school’s reputation and impact on a global scale.
To discover more about the department's accomplishments and their recent publications, go to: SIBE Area Highlight Post
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If you missed #RutgersGivingDays, you can still make a difference. As an evolution of the Business Leader Development Program, the Business Honors Program at RSBC provides a select cohort of high-achieving students with stimulating, enriching, and experiential learning opportunities to foster their leadership skills, peer collaboration, sense of community, and continuous growth opportunities through networking. Your donation will support a cohort of high-achieving students with a stimulating learning environment that includes enriching and experiential learning opportunities to foster leadership skills, collaborative problem solving, an empowering sense of community, and continuous growth opportunities through engagement with industry professionals.
Give Now!
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