Number of Minority Business Professors in U.S. Has Quadrupled, The PhD Project Reports, As "Dr. Cuatro" Is Named

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Apr 04, 2013, 08:35 ET

MONTVALE, N.J., April 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The number of doctorally-qualified minority (African-American, Hispanic-American, and Native American) professors at U.S. business schools has quadrupled since 1994, due largely to the efforts of The PhD Project, an award-winning program aimed at increasing diversity in America's business management ranks.

The quadrupling occurred recently when Dr. James Alvarez-Mourey received his PhD in Marketing from the University of Michigan and became the 1,176^th minority business professor in the U.S. When The PhD Project started in 1994, there were only 294 doctorally-qualified minority professors in business schools across the Unites States.

Dr. Alvarez-Mourey has earned the unofficial title of "Dr. Cuatro." He defended his dissertation: "Like a Cold Glass of Water on a Hot Summer Day: Essays Exploring Differential Sensitivity to Non-conscious Cues in Consumer Contexts" and has accepted a faculty position at DePaul University.

"The true beauty of this milestone is that it is an achievement that, quite literally, includes each and every one of us (in The PhD Project) and our respective accomplishments," said Dr. Alvarez-Mourey. "What a great honor it is to be Dr. Cuatro. I am sure I echo the words of many when I say that the support and guidance from friends, mentors, and colleagues in The PhD Project were instrumental in helping me achieve what once seemed impossible for someone in my family. I look forward to giving back as much of myself as I can as we work together to find Dr. Cinco!"

"We are proud of Dr. Alvarez-Mourey's personal accomplishment in completing the challenging journey to becoming a professor," said Bernard J. Milano, President of the KPMG Foundation, the creator and lead sponsor of the program. "Moreover, his achievement symbolizes the collective success of nearly nine hundred new minority professors, whom we have recruited, encouraged and supported over the past 19 years. With this milestone, and the generous support of our funders, together we are changing the face of business education forever."

The PhD Project, a 501(c) (3) organization that the KPMG Foundation founded in 1994, recruits minority professionals from business into doctoral programs in all business disciplines. Since its inception, The PhD Project has been responsible for the increase in the number of minority business professors from 294 to 1,176. Further, 357 minorities are currently enrolled in doctoral programs, and will take a place at the front of the classroom over the next few years. The Project attacks the root cause of minority under-representation in corporate jobs: historically, very few minority college students study business as an entree to a corporate career. Diversifying the faculty attracts more minorities to study business and better prepares all students to function in a diverse workforce.

Dr. Alvarez-Mourey began his PhD journey by attending the 2005 PhD Project conference. Each year, highly qualified professionals who are considering leaving their careers to enter doctoral programs in business are invited to The PhD Project Conference where they hear from deans, professors and current minority doctoral students about the benefits of pursuing a business Ph.D. Conference participants are provided with the tools and resources they need for the application/admission process to doctoral programs. Once they enter a program, every minority business doctoral student in an AACSB accredited U.S. business school becomes a member of one of The Project's five (accounting, finance, information systems, marketing and management) Doctoral Student Associations (DSAs). Each year, The Project holds a Conference for each of the five DSAs where the doctoral students come together forming a strong support network while receiving important tools to help them navigate their doctoral programs. Dr. Alvarez-Mourey is a member of The PhD Project Marketing Doctoral Student Association.

Some of America's top companies, foundations, associations and academic organizations support The PhD Project. They are: KPMG Foundation, Graduate Management Admission Council, Citi Foundation, AACSB International, 240+ universities, AICPA Foundation, DiversityInc, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, The Merck Company Foundation, Microsoft Corporation, Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, Rockwell Collins, American Marketing Association, John Deere Foundation, AT&T, CIGNA, ADP, The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, California State University System, Edison International, Lincoln Financial Group, Aerotek/TEKsystems (operating companies of Allegis Group), 3M and American Accounting Association.