News Release

UNC Kenan-Flagler names three
to entrepreneurial leadership posts

CHAPEL HILL -- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School is building on its national reputation as a leader in entrepreneurial studies with three key appointments.

Dean Steve Jones has announced the naming of Dr. Clay Hamner as the Frank Hawkins Kenan professor of entrepreneurship; Randy Myer as the entrepreneurial professor of the practice, a new full-time position; and Ted Zoller as executive director and adjunct assistant professor in the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies.

"Entrepreneurship is part of our heritage at UNC Kenan-Flagler," said Jones. "Continued innovation and leadership in the field are central to our success at offering one of the most comprehensive programs for aspiring entrepreneurs."

The Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, part of the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at UNC Kenan-Flagler, is the home of the Venture Capital Investment Competition (www.unc.edu/vcic). The event, in which more than 40 top business schools have participated, will hold its national finals today (April 7) through Saturday (April 9) in Chapel Hill.

Hamner, who will continue to direct the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, is a veteran of both the business and academic worlds. He founded Montrose Capital Corp. in 1982 with backing from Frank Kenan, J.B. Fuqua, Dave Thomas and Roy Carver, among others. His transactions are as diverse as venture capital, banking, manufacturing, distribution, real estate and retail.

He has served on the board of Wendy’s International Inc., Fuqua Industries, Glen Glen Sound Studies, Consolidated Films, The Pantry Inc., Interstate Securities, Southmark and other private and public companies. He is a founding board member of the Kenan Institute and is on the board of the UNC Funds.

Hamner was an associate professor at Northwestern University and a tenured professor at Duke University, and he has written or edited eight books and published more than 50 articles. Hamner received his doctorate from Indiana University and was elected a fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Institute of Decisions Sciences.

Myer, who received his bachelor’s degree from UNC, joined the university in 1998 after a successful career as an entrepreneur, corporate executive and strategy consultant. He was the chief operating officer for Lindblad Expeditions, a family business that specializes in the adventure travel market.

Myer founded Best Friends Pet Care, a national chain of high-quality pet services facilities, and was a partner with Booz, Allen & Hamilton, specializing in the consumer product and services industries and leading assignments in customer service, marketing and operations strategy. Early in his career, he worked for Spalding Sporting Goods as director of manufacturing for one of its divisions and for IBM as a sales representative.

He received his bachelor’s degree in psychology and MBA degree from Harvard University.

Zoller will manage the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies’ staff and its outreach programs, teach and serve as the primary liaison to UNC’s Carolina Entrepreneurial Initiative (www.unc.edu/cei), a program designed to make entrepreneurship a life-changing experience for undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff that is funded in part by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Zoller most recently was associate dean at UNC’s School of Government. He has taught entrepreneurship courses at UNC Kenan-Flagler since 1999 and was a founding instructor of its "Launching the Company" program, which has increased the number of spin-off companies from UNC.

He is a former high-tech entrepreneur and principal with American Management Systems Inc. in Washington, D.C., and the founding director of Jefferson Park, an advanced technology research park sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy's Jefferson Lab and 12 leading Southeastern U.S. research universities, including UNC.

Zoller has advised entrepreneurial firms statewide and in Virginia. He has master’s degrees from Syracuse University and the University of Virginia in technology commercialization and economic development and is completing his doctorate in economic development at UNC.

Entrepreneur magazine recognized UNC Kenan-Flagler as having the number three entrepreneurial studies program nationwide in its April issue. Last year, Forbes.com and Princeton Review ranked UNC as the top entrepreneurial university.

Through the Center for Entrepreneurial Studies (www.ces.unc.edu), UNC Kenan-Flagler prepares students for career success, offering 35 cross-disciplinary courses in the MBA program, 10 courses in the undergraduate business (BSBA) program and a portfolio of programs and activities.

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UNC Kenan-Flagler contact: Allison Adams, (919) 962-7235 or aadams@unc.edu

News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu