Education
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Ph.D. in Marketing, Columbia University
Research Interests
Biography
Dr. Beheruz N. Sethna is the first known person of Indian origin to become President of a U.S. University. He was also the first person of any ethnic minority to become president of a college or
university in Georgia other than a historically black college.
From 1994 to June 30, 2013, he was President of the institution now known as the University of West Georgia (UWG). When he retired, he was the longest-serving University President in the State (public
and private). The following accomplishments are shared ones, and reflect the work of hundreds of others.
During Dr. Sethna’s tenure as President, the institution saw transformative change from a College to a State University to a Ph. D -granting SACS Level VI University (this is SACS’s highest level – e.g. the best private and public universities in the South are SACS Level VI. In August of 2013, the Board approved a sector change for UWG to a Comprehensive University with a mission to be a world-class academic institution.
During Dr. Sethna’s tenure, UWG’s academic standards increased several times and full-time equivalent
enrollment increased by approximately 50% to close to 12,000 students.
Almost 40 new buildings have been added during Dr. Sethna’s tenure at UWG. During his tenure, more
square footage was added than every other President combined since the institution started in 1906 – at an
investment of almost one third of a billion dollars.
During his tenure, UWG awarded more than 33,000 degrees, more than every other Presidential
administration combined in the institution’s 107-year history.
The endowment was increased by more than 10 times its 1994 level.
Dr. Sethna has also served two terms in 1999-2000 and 2006-07 (each 12-15 months long) on an interim
basis as Senior and then Executive Vice Chancellor for the entire University System of Georgia. He had
functional responsibility for approximately 260,000 students and 10,000 faculty members, in all 35 public
institutions in the State, including four Research Universities, 15 Comprehensive Universities, and 16
Two-year and State Colleges, in the following areas: Academic Affairs (all program and faculty
decisions), Student Affairs (including admissions, registrars, and other student-related matters), Planning
and Policy Analysis (research on University System data), the Office of Information and Instructional
Technology (all technology decisions, including Y2K implementation, PeachNet – the Statewide
backbone, and related areas) and (in 2006) Fiscal Affairs for part of the term. Plus: In 2006-07 as
Executive Vice Chancellor, he had line responsibility for all 15 Comprehensive Universities, in which
these Presidents reported to him.
As Tom Peters said, the best leaders don’t create followers; they create more leaders: Dr. Sethna has
helped develop, mentor, and/or give opportunities to two sitting Deans, a Provost, another sitting VP, and
two sitting Presidents (both of whom came from other states to Georgia at his invitation). He has also
appointed two Vice Chancellors during his System Office role. The list is longer when one includes
protégés who went on to serve in major leadership positions at universities in other states. He also serves
as a Presidential Mentor for the American Council on Education’s Spectrum program, from which at least
two of his protégés have risen to interim presidencies.
In December of 2013, after his retirement from the position of President, he was given The University of
West Georgia’s highest honor, The Founder’s Award.
OTHER RECOGNITIONS, HONORS, AND AWARDS:
Although Dr. Sethna would be the first to state that UWG’s accomplishments have been a team effort,
perhaps some of that recognition falls to its President of 19 years. For example, among other things,
UWG is nationally known in academic debate and undergraduate research. UWG has won two national
championships in academic debate, and in the past 5 years, has beaten Harvard four times. In the past 15
years, UWG has beaten every university in America 8 times in undergraduate research papers at the
National Collegiate Honors Council and has won four first prizes in the past decade at the National Social
Sciences Association – 3 of the 4 have been from Dr. Sethna’s class; he taught a course each year as
President. He was elected Honors Professor of the Year by the students of the Honors College.
He has received personal Resolutions of Commendation from the Governor of the State of Georgia, the
Senate, and the House of the State of Georgia, and from the State of Georgia Board of Regents, and has
been named among the 100 Most Influential Georgians six times.
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia has also awarded him several other honors. It
named him a Regents’ Professor – the first Regents’ Professor in all of the 107-year history of the
University of West Georgia, and named him President Emeritus. Earlier, the Board awarded Dr. Sethna
the prestigious Cornerstone Award, which is not an annual award, but is given occasionally. In 2012-13
UWG was named the Customer Service institution of the Year, and Dr. Sethna the Customer Service
President of the Year.
He has had hundreds of media appearances to his credit based on his academic work and his
administrative contributions, including national TV appearances such as the CBS Early Show with Bryant
Gumbel and CNN's American Stories.
Dr. Sethna has also earned a large number of academic honors. Perhaps most unique is his record of
being nationally recognized for instructional innovation by the Decision Sciences Institute eight times.
(No other person in the history of this national competition has been so honored more than two times.)
He has published a book, Research Methods in Marketing and Management, by Tata McGraw-Hill. In
addition, he has published 69 papers (30 of them since becoming UWG President), several case studies,
and obtained externally funded research from the U.S. Department of Energy, IBM, AT&T and others.
While being President of a University with almost 12,000 students, he served as the research advisor for
58 students over the past decade, each of whose research projects was selected for one or more nationallevel
presentations; and his students garnered three national first prizes for undergraduate research at the
National Social Sciences Association in the past decade.
Dr. Sethna is a Distinguished Alumnus of the two most prestigious higher education institutions in
India/Asia: IIT-Bombay and IIM-Ahmedabad. It is estimated that no more than a handful of people hold
both these honors. Dr. Sethna has been personally honored by universities and University Presidents in
China, Japan, Korea, Saudi Arabia, and countries in Europe; and also by Vice Chancellors and Board
Chairs in India. Dr. Sethna has been an invited speaker at hundreds of meetings, and at universities in
many U.S. states and foreign countries, including the University of Oxford in England; he has also been
the keynote speaker at various corporate forums.
He has been a Fulbright Professor and has taught at some of the most prestigious institutions in South
Asia. He also taught a landmark program in computers in Nepal – taught to senior professionals from the
national Government, Higher Education, and the corporate sector.
On July 4, 2014, he was honored by the Carnegie Corporation by being named one of the “Great
Immigrants – The Pride of America” http://greatimmigrants.carnegie.org/profile/beheruz-sethna/
Homepages
Contact Information
Room 2310, Miller Hall, Richards College of Business
The University of West Georgia
Carrollton, Georgia 30118
(678) 839-5078
