Charles Horvath of Beaver Falls, Pa. is the newest addition to Milligan’s business faculty. He will begin by teaching External Strategic Management in the Master of Business Administration program in August.
“He will hit the ground running in the fall…students will find him challenging and motivating,” said Bill Greer, Kegley associate professor of economics and business and chair, area of professional learning.
At the undergraduate level, Horvath will teach Operations Management, currently taught by Assistant Professor of Business Administration Vicki Sitter and Marketing, formerly taught by Bob Orsini, adjunct professor of business administration, who died in February.
Horvath said, “As a Christian, I felt God calling me to a school where I can combine my education with my Christian worldview. This is particularly relevant when I teach business ethics. Without the Bible as our guide, ethics becomes a matter of personal preference.”
Greer chaired the committee to locate Horvath. Also sitting on the search committee were Bob Mahan, associate professor of accounting, Sitter and Chris Heard, assistant professor of Bible. Greer said faculty search committees utilize a faculty member from another discipline to offer a different perspective.
With the addition of a faculty member and the beginning class of the M.B.A. program, the business department will be shuffling faculty course loads. Another business faculty member will be hired next year to teach both graduate and undergraduate courses as another round of M.B.A. cohorts begin classes.
“I don’t want our traditional undergraduate program's quality to diminish because of the M.B.A. program,” said Greer.
Faculty holding a Ph.D. will teach in both the graduate and undergraduate degree programs in their area of expertise and interest. Sitter will finish her Ph.D. from Regent University in one year. Greer said he wants as many M.B.A. courses taught by full-time Milligan faculty members as possible. However, a class in health care administration will be taught by an adjunct professor.
Horvath holds a B.S. in psychology and an M.B.A. in organizational behavior, both from Pennsylvania State University, a M.Div. in pastoral theology from Gordon-Cornwell Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. in organizational studies from University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He and his wife, Becky, have three grown children.
Horvath said, “The people [at Milligan] have a true commitment to excellence that you do not always find at Christian schools. Also, a liberal arts college is the best way to go: business administration is best taught as a part of a holistic education, not as an end in itself.”