ÃÛÌÒµ¼º½

Skip to main content
Leavey School of Business Homepage

Top Stories

A diverse group of eight L.E.A.V.E.Y. award winners poses together, holding letters that spell L.E.A.V.E.Y. while wearing large chain necklaces.

A diverse group of eight L.E.A.V.E.Y. award winners poses together, holding letters that spell L.E.A.V.E.Y. while wearing large chain necklaces.

Leavey Honors Faculty and Staff at End-of-Year Celebration

The Leavey School of Business celebrated the close of the 2025–26 academic year with faculty and staff honors, including nine professors earning the school's top distinction and the debut of a new award program recognizing outstanding staff contributions.

The Leavey School of Business honored its faculty and staff at the close of the 2025–26 academic year, recognizing outstanding contributors at a June 16 Spotlight Lunch that also featured a conversation with ÃÛÌÒµ¼º½ Provost and Executive Vice President Jim Glaser.

With the academic year wrapped up, the afternoon offered a chance to step back and celebrate, including the debut of a new staff recognition program alongside the annual faculty honors.

On the faculty side, nine professors earned the school's most prestigious academic distinction -  the "Triple 8" - awarded to faculty who receive perfect scores across all three areas of evaluation: teaching, research, and service. It's a distinction that reflects the kind of sustained, well-rounded contribution that defines exceptional faculty.

2025–26 Triple 8 Recipients:

  • Sanjiv Das, Finance
  • John Ifcher, Economics
  • Yongtae Kim, Accounting
  • Sam Lee, Finance
  • Tao Li, Information Systems & Analytics 
  • Sami Najafi, Information Systems & Analytics 
  • Barry Posner, Management
  • Michele Samorani, Information Systems & Analytics 
  • Savannah Shi, Marketing

The ceremony also marked the debut of the L.E.A.V.E.Y. Awards, a new recognition program celebrating the contributions of Leavey's staff community. Each category reflects a value central to the school's mission - from leadership and innovation to academic support, community building, and institutional commitment.

2025–26 L.E.A.V.E.Y. Award Recipients:

  • Leadership - Alexa Grau, Assistant Director, Digital Marketing & Communications
  • Excellence & Innovation - Ashley Kern, Director of Faculty Affairs & Planning
  • Academic Support & Impact - Fatima Sheikh, Assistant Director, MS Programs
  • Values in Action - Susie Huang, Academic Department Manager, Accounting 
  • Engagement & Community - Annasofia Zuleta, Operations and Communications Manager, MOBI
  • Years of Service - Marianne Farag (28 years), Academic Department Manager, Economics

Congratulations to all of this year's honorees, and thank you to everyone in the Leavey community who contributed to a remarkable year.

Jun 25, 2026