2021-2022 New Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty
A new crop of educators joins the ranks of tenured and tenured-track faculty at UTEP and the Woody L. Hunt College of Business.
At the Woody L. Hunt College of Business, seven individuals have joined the faculty. Check out their bios below, which include their research interests, publication history and some of their hobbies.
Jordan M. Barker
Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Management
Dr. Barker joins UTEP from the University of Arkansas (UARK) with a research background in supply chain and transportation strategy, particularly in the context of complementing existing firm-level competitive and operational competencies. His research involves buyer-supplier relationships and inventory management. Dr. Barker earned his doctoral degree in supply chain management from the University of Arkansas. He completed a master's degree (summa cum laude) in business administration and a bachelor's in logistics and supply chain management (magna cum laude) from Missouri State University. In 2020, Dr. Barker was selected to serve on the Journal of Supply Chain Management’s Junior Editorial Review Board. He was recognized as a Distinguished Doctoral Fellow at the University of Arkansas and is a two-time recipient of the Ph.D. Research Award from the Supply Chain Management Research Center. He is a member of Decision Sciences Institute and the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals. Prior to his career in academia, Dr. Barker worked for a large national third-party logistics firm managing freight and customer/carrier negotiations for a diverse group of national accounts. "I am excited to join the El Paso community and the UTEP family," shared Dr. Barker. During his downtime he enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, hiking, and eating.
Zifeng Feng
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics and Finance
Dr. Feng joins UTEP as an Assistant Professor of Finance in the Department of Economics and Finance, Woody L. Hunt College of Business. Dr. Feng’s research mainly focuses on finance, with a specific concentration on private and public real estate. His research has been published in the leading real estate focused journals such as Real Estate Economics, The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, and Journal of Real Estate Research. His research at UTEP will focus on steady advancements in real estate research as evidenced by publications in top-tier journals and continuous improvements on the newly launched real estate program. Another focus of his research is the adoption of financial technology within financial institutions. Dr. Feng holds a Ph.D. in Finance and an M.S. in Real Estate from Florida International University, an M.B.A. from Jinan University, and a B.A. in Public Administration from Peking University. Prior to joining UTEP, Dr. Feng was an Assistant Professor of Finance at Frostburg State University. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Feng worked for over ten years in consultancy and real estate. He is a member of the American Real Estate & Urban Economics Association (AREUEA), the American Real Estate Society (ARES), and the Financial Management Association International (FMA). When away from work, Dr. Feng enjoys traveling and playing games.
Bo Gao
Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting and Information System
Dr. Gao joins UTEP as an Assistant Professor of Accounting from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a research background in earnings management, insider trading, corporate governance, and determinants of audit quality. Dr. Gao earned a doctoral degree in accountancy from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She completed a master's of finance from the University of Kansas and a master's of agricultural economics from Texas A&M University. Dr. Gao completed her undergraduate studies at the China Agricultural University in Beijing, China, earning two bachelor's degrees - one in finance and a second in English. She is a member of the American Accounting Association. Prior to joining UTEP, Dr. Gao served as an instructor in the School of Accountancy at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is the recipient of the 2019 AAA Financial Accounting and Reporting Section (FARS) Excellence in Reviewing Award, and the J.J. and Eleanor S. Ogle Fellowship in recognition of her outstanding graduate studies.
Destan Kirimhan
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics and Finance
Dr. Kirimhan joins UTEP from the University of South Carolina with a research focus on financial intermediation, financial stability, financial regulation, institutional investors, and blockchain use cases in financial services. She earned a doctoral degree in business administration with an emphasis in finance from the University of South Carolina; a master's degree in economics from Bilkent University in Turkey; and a bachelor's degree in economics from TOBB University in Turkey. Dr. Kirimhan serves as a research fellow and at the associate team of the Digital Euro Association (DEA), which is a think tank specializing in central bank digital currencies, stablecoins, crypto assets, and other forms of digital money. She is a member of the Crypto Academy, American Finance Association (AFA), Financial Management Association (FMA), American Economic Association (AEA), International Banking, Economics, and the Finance Association (IBEFA). During her graduate studies, Dr. Kirimhan served as the Editorial Assistant of the Tourism Analysis: An Interdisciplinary Journal. Her research, and that of her co-authors, was recognized at the EuroCHRIE Conference in 2018 in Dublin, Ireland. She has worked as an assistant expert at the Research Council of Turkey on science, technology, and innovation policies, and served as instructor of economics at Baskent University in Ankara, Turkey. In 2016, Dr. Kirimhan received the Teaching Innovation Grant for designing a flipped class at the University of South Carolina. Her most recent public outreach engagements include serving on a panel at the Global Conference on Services and Retail Management, where she discussed the impact of blockchain technology on services and retail industries. Some of her hobbies include ice skating, dancing, and learning new languages. Dr. Kirimhan is excited to be joining UTEP and looks forward to engaging with students and collaborating with researchers.
Nandini Nim
Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Management
Dr. Nim earned a doctoral degree in marketing from Georgia State University, a master’s in business economics and a bachelor’s in business studies from the University of Delhi, India. Her research involves innovation, new technologies, platform-based business models, customer experience, empirical marketing strategy, and global marketing strategy. Dr. Nim received the GTA Teaching Excellence Award from the Robinson College of Business in recognition of her outstanding teaching and performance in the classroom. Some of her teaching interests include marketing strategy, marketing theory, product and brand management, consumer behavior, and customer relationship management. She is a member of the Academy of Marketing Association (AMA) and the Academy of Marketing Science (AMS).
Valbona Sulcaj
Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting and Information Systems
Dr. Sulcaj joins UTEP from the University of Kentucky with a research background in auditing, accounting, corporate governance, and social networks, with a particular focus on reporting and disclosure. She is passionate about conducting research that is of interest to academics as well as regulators and practitioners. Dr. Sulcaj has over ten years of experience as accountant, auditor, and manager. Prior to joining UTEP, Dr. Sulcaj served as an instructor of financial accounting at the University of Kentucky, where she completed her doctoral degree in business administration. Dr. Sulcaj earned a master's in business administration from Drexel University, a master's in finance from the University of Tirana in Albania, and a bachelor's in business administration from the University of Pisa in Italy. She is a 2020 AAA/Deloitte/J. Michael Cook Doctoral Consortium Fellow, and the recipient of the Gatton College of Business and Economics Teaching Excellence Award (2020). Dr. Sulcaj is a member of the American Accounting Association (AAA) and a recipient of their Auditing Section Best Paper Award (2019). During her leisure time she enjoys traveling and visiting new places.
Hyo Jin Yoon
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics and Finance
Dr. Yoon comes to UTEP from the University of South Carolina with a research background in corporate finance, corporate governance, institutional investors, financial reporting transparency, formal and informal institutions, and international finance. She earned a doctoral degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina, a master's in management from Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea, and a bachelor's in business from Indiana University. During her time at the University of South Carolina, Dr. Yoon was selected as the semi-finalist for the Best Paper Award in Corporate Finance at the 2020 Financial Management Association Annual Meeting. She was also the recipient of the USC Graduate Research Grant Award in recognition of her support to promote the advancement of research and creativity. She has served as a reviewer for Corporate Governance: An International Review; Emerging Markets Review; Journal of Accounting and Public Policy; Journal of Business Ethics; and the Journal of Financial Stability.