At the start of the fall 2018 semester, Stevenson University appointed a new chair of business administration.

The new chair, Zamira Simkins, is also an associate professor of finance. She previously taught courses in money and banking and economics at the University of Wisconsin, where she was an associate professor and co-director of the School of Business and Economics.

Simkins has an undergraduate degree in economics from Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University, and she received a master’s degree from Missouri State University in international affairs. Her doctorate in economics is from American University.

She has also worked as a consultant for the World Bank and taught graduate classes in data science. Her research includes writing about retirement planning and mortgages, and she is a co-author of an economics study guide published by Thomson South-Western.

Simkins said that being chair is a very busy role. There are always unexpected events that are often time-consuming and require focused attention. Some of the responsibilities of the chair of business include overseeing faculty within the department, helping to build the curriculum, scheduling plans and collaborating with other chairs within the School of Business.

Scheduling classes for the fall and spring terms is essential to her job, which presents the challenge of accounting for student athletes, for whom she must eliminate conflicts among class times, practices and games.

The chair also teaches two classes, Principles of Finance and Investments, the latter of which is her area of expertise.

For the future, Simkins hopes to get the program accredited. This, she believes, demonstrates to students and external stakeholders that Stevenson University is committed to providing excellent education in the business administration program. Simkins plans to measure the growth of student learning outcomes based on the standards they set for students.

The chair of business does not get much time away from her office besides summer vacation, since her teaching load and occasional weekend obligations are demanding. Simkins has a set of 9-year-old twins, and she and her family are Baltimore Ravens fans, often attending football games. She has traveled overseas with her family, and names Moscow, London, Dubai and Turkey as some of her favorite places. Simkins speaks three languages: English, Kyrgyz and Russian.

Simkins’ office is in the Brown School of Business and Leadership 204C.