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Beck A. Taylor Professional Biography

Beck A. Taylor, Ph.D., has been appointed the 18th president of Whitworth University and will begin his duties on July 1. He currently serves as dean and professor of economics for the Brock School of Business at Samford University, in Birmingham, Ala. He joined Samford in 2005 after serving as associate dean for research and faculty development for the Hankamer School of Business at Baylor University, where he was also the W.H. Smith Professor of Economics.

After earning his undergraduate degree from Baylor, cum laude, with majors in economics and finance, Taylor was employed as an analyst for Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) in Houston, Texas. He went on to earn his M.S. and Ph.D. in economics from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. After returning to the Baylor faculty, Taylor received the Young Researcher Award from the Hankamer School of Business, in 2000, and was subsequently named the first holder of the W.H. Smith Professorship in Economics. In 2002, he was appointed a visiting scholar by Harvard University; he spent one year in residence at the Harvard Graduate School of Education pursuing research interests. In 2005, Taylor was named a Baylor University Outstanding Professor for his research accomplishments.

As dean of Samford's Brock School of Business, Taylor has helped to lead the rapid transformation of the business school, spearheaded by a commitment from Harry B. Brock, Jr., founder of Compass Bank, to build a $100 million endowment for the school. In addition to his fund raising efforts, which have also seen the establishment of new endowed centers, scholarships, professorships and chairs, Taylor has led the Brock School to establish eight new academic programs, as well as the school's new honors program. The Brock School's entrepreneurship program was recognized in 2010 as the nation's top emerging program by the U.S. Association for Small Business & Entrepreneurship. Additionally, the Brock School's graduate and executive education programs were redesigned to serve the needs of modern executives. In an effort to embrace the business community and to build bridges for students and professionals alike, Taylor established the Samford Business Network, with chapters in Birmingham, Atlanta, and Nashville, and also established a 45-member advisory board of the region's top business leaders.

As a scholar, Taylor has published more than two dozen studies in economics journals such as Review of Economics and Statistics; Journal of Labor Economics; Journal of Human Resources; and Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking. Illustrating his diverse research interests and his connections to the social sciences, Taylor has also published articles on his research in public health and child developmental psychology. His research has been cited in testimony given before the U.S. Congress and the California State Assembly, and also has been referenced in publications such as The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Christian Science Monitor, and Chief Executive Magazine. In 2002, Taylor presented research findings concerning retail gasoline pricing before the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C. His research has also been mentioned by organizations as diverse as the National Center for Children and Poverty at Columbia University, the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Center for the Advancement of Health, the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, and the Heritage Foundation. Taylor is a popular speaker and commentator, and he appears frequently in print media and on television and radio.

Taylor is a member of numerous professional and academic organizations including the American Economic Association, Beta Gamma Sigma (international honor society for business programs), Omicron Delta Epsilon (international economics honor society), Beta Alpha Psi (honor society for financial information students and professionals), Association of Christian Economists, and the Southern Business Administration Association. Additionally, he served for six years on the editorial board of the Atlantic Economic Journal. He serves on the board of directors for several professional organizations, including Beta Gamma Sigma, the Alabama Council for Economic Education, the Association of Christian Economists, the Alabama Association of Nonprofits, and the Business Council of Alabama.

Taylor has served as a business consultant for dozens of organizations such as Arco, Citgo, ABB Vetco Gray, and the NCAA. Additionally, he is affiliated with two consulting firms, Finance and Resource Management Consultants (Bellingham, Wash.) and AgriFocus, Inc. (Monument, Colo.). Taylor served as a director for the NASDAQ-listed Goldleaf Financial Solutions, Inc. (Norcross, Ga., sold in 2009). He is a trustee of the Birmingham Business Alliance (formerly Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce) and serves as chairman of the Alliance's Council of Economic Advisors. He is also a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham. In 2006, Taylor was named one of Birmingham's "Top 40 Under 40" by the Birmingham Business Journal, and in 2009, he was named among the 100 people to know in Birmingham, by the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce.