UTEP Names New Business Administration Dean

Last Updated on January 24, 2019 at 12:00 AM

Originally published January 24, 2019

By UC Staff

UTEP Communications

James E. Payne, Ph.D., has been named Dean of the College of Business Administration at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). He also will hold the Paul L. Foster and Alejandra de la Vega Foster Distinguished Chair in International Business. Payne joins UTEP from Benedictine University in Lisle, Ill., where he currently serves as Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.

"We welcome Dr. Payne to UTEP as dean of the College of Business Administration," said President Diana Natalicio. "His extensive experience as an academic administrator and teacher-scholar promises to enhance the work of the college’s faculty, staff and students. We are very pleased that he will play a leadership role in COBA as it continues its mission of providing UTEP students world-class educational opportunities that ensure their competitiveness in a global marketplace."

Payne has over 30 years of experience in higher education with 16 years in administration. His past appointments include Dean of the J. Whitney Bunting College of Business at Georgia College & State University, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of New Orleans, Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Illinois State University and Chair of the Department of Economics at Illinois State University.

In addition to his administrative background, Payne has a distinguished record of accomplishments in research. He served as a Fulbright Research Scholar and a Fulbright Senior Specialist at the Institute of Economics in Zagreb, Croatia. He has published 250 peer-reviewed journal articles and his scholarly work has been cited more than 11,000 times. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Economics and Finance, and serves as an editorial board member for a dozen other academic journals.

“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Payne to UTEP,” said John Wiebe, Ph.D., acting provost and vice president for academic affairs. “He brings both rich experience in administration and a strong commitment to UTEP’s institutional mission of simultaneously fostering both educational access and academic excellence.”

Payne earned his doctoral degree and master’s degree in economics from Florida State University and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Berea College.

Payne will join UTEP on May 1, succeeding Stephen Crites, Ph.D., who has served as interim dean of the College of Business Administration since August 2018.

“We wish to thank Dr. Crites for the leadership he has provided this year,” Wiebe said. “We are grateful to Dr. Crites for his service to students, faculty, and the college and for assuring continued momentum during this time of transition.”