Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) is pleased to announce Dr. Thomas A. Clerkin has become the university’s first tenured faculty member in its Division of Business. His promotion from assistant to associate professor takes effect July 1.
We congratulate Professor Clerkin on his achievement, which is an important landmark for IUPUC and another positive step in our continued development of a strong university, said Dr. Marwan Wafa, vice chancellor and dean. Clerkin is the first faculty to be tenured and promoted under the new standards developed by IUPUC with the support of the administration at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Moving forward, these criteria will be used to evaluate the teaching, research, and service of all IUPUC faculty to ensure their efforts are clearly aligned with the university’s mission for responsiveness to regional needs.?
Clerkin, who co-founded IUPUC’s Executive Education program and served as its first executive director, joined the university as a visiting assistant professor of management in 2003. His academic appointments include a promotion to assistant professor of management in 2005. A member of IUPUC’s faculty senate, Clerkin represents the university on the Indiana University Council for Regional Engagement & Economic Development and a number of other policy-making and campus committees.
Before joining the university, Clerkin held a number of executive positions, including Corporate Vice President of Organizational & Leadership Development at ArvinMeritor, Inc. and Vice President of Human Resources & Administration for Arvin Industries and Adobe Air, Inc. He also served as a consultant to the Indiana Department of Labor in addition to several for-profit and nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S..
Clerkin’s teaching career began, however, as a social studies teacher for the Franklin Community Schools. He has deep roots in the field of education, having served as a regional trustee and vice chair for Ivy Tech Community College from 1999–2002 and a member of the IUPUC Dean’s Advisory Committee from 1999–2003. President of the Columbus Learning Center Management Corporation from 1999–2005, he was instrumental in leading the efforts to build the Columbus Learning Center (CLC). Clerkin has been a member of the Community Education Coalition (CEC) board since 1997, serving as its chair from 2000-02. He is a founding board member of the International School of Columbus.
Active in civic endeavors, Clerkin has served on numerous boards and commissions, including the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Board, the Mayor’s Downtown Task Force, Board of Aviation Commissioners, and the Columbus Parks & Recreation Board. Currently, he serves on the Arvin Gift Fund, a community fund that supports education and economic development in southeastern Indiana.
Although Clerkin is the most recent professor at IUPUC to earn tenure, there are more than 14 tenure-track faculty currently in the promotion pipeline. At least two additional tenure-track professors will begin at the university this fall.
The promotion and tenure process is a methodical one, usually taking about five years from start to finish. It includes a thorough, independent evaluation by a carefully selected panel of tenured professors, many of whom are external to the university itself.
Faculty who seek tenure must demonstrate meaningful scholarship and relevant service in their profession, on campus, and to the university. They must participate in civic engagement that is national or international in scope but has ties to the local community. In addition, they must exhibit innovation, entrepreneurship, and collaboration, along with a host of other qualities related to their academic endeavors, explained Wafa.
Noted Michael J. Oakes, interim head of the Division of Business, Tom’s scholarship earned outstanding reviews. His exploration of models and best practices for career attainment through executive search firms, which was the subject of his Ph.D. dissertation, is noteworthy.
In addition to his Ph.D., Clerkin holds two M.A. degrees in in management and a B.S. in secondary education. He is a 2010 recipient of Indiana University’s Trustee Teaching Award, was named outstanding MBA faculty member at IUPUC in 2009 and 2005, and outstanding full-time IUPUC faculty member in 2007. He has published scholarly articles in the top business and teaching pedagogy journals and has received numerous nominations and awards for conference papers and proceedings.
Noted for his work to engage students in developing innovative business strategies, Clerkin received the Global Business Simulation Game Master Professor Award from the University of Alabama in 2011, 2009, 2008, 2007, and 2005. The awards resulted in his mentorship of IUPUC students engaged in a competition with their peers from more than 100 universities in 12 countries. He also holds certifications in the use of Predictive Indexes (PI) and Emotional Intelligence (EQI) assessment tools.