Email: kendra.harris@uvi.edu | Phone (St. Croix): 340-692-4151 | Phone (St. Thomas): 340-693-1301
Dr.Kendra L. Harris assumed the role of Dean of the School of Business and professor of marketing on July 1, 2019. Dr. Harris brings with her over 25 years of professional and higher education experience that include numerous awards. She received the 2019 Teaching Excellence Award for Alabama A&M University. In the preceding year she received the Teaching Excellence Award for the Department of Management, Marketing, and Logistics at Alabama A&M. Other awards include the North Carolina Central University Award for Teaching Excellence, the North Carolina Central University School of Business Undergraduate Students’ Choice Award (two consecutive years), and a 2017 Ph.D. Project Service Recognition Award. She was also a recipient of a National Doctoral Fellowship Award from the National Black MBA Association. Her previous faculty appointments include positions at Howard University and Cornell University. She has also taught for The George Washington University, Hood College, the University of Maryland University College, and Johns Hopkins University.
She conducts research in the area of consumer satisfaction and most recently has developed a research stream related to marketing implications of a growing singles population. Dr. Harris and her co-authors published a paper, “The Proliferating Singles Population and Its Impact on a Transformative Marketing Landscape,” in the Journal of Managerial Implications, in the fall of 2019. In the fall of 2016, she self-published a book, Happily Never Married.
"I am delighted to have the opportunity to serve the University of the Virgin Islands in the capacity of Dean of the School of Business,” said Dr. Harris. “I very much look forward to identifying ways in which I can leverage the talent that exists here with the faculty, administrators, staff, alumni, and stakeholders to continue to move the School of Business forward in the best interest of the students in particular, the university in general, and the Virgin Islands community overall. As part of my activities, I look forward to continuing to build relationships with business and industry.”
For the past 20 years, Dr. Harris has cultivated small business education, development, and networking. She has conducted business seminars for the Small Business Development Center in Washington, (DC) and the Chamber of Commerce in Huntsville, (Ala.). Additionally, she has developed a track record for raising money for academic initiatives by forging partnerships among major businesses, small businesses, government, and educational institutions. Her fundraising activities have included partnerships with the 3M corporation, State Farm insurance company, the Sales Education Foundation, and the Army Reserve.
Dr. Harris earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing from The American University in Washington, D.C. She holds a Master’s of Business Administration with course emphases in marketing and finance from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business in Durham, NC, and a Ph.D. in Business Administration in the major field of marketing and a supporting field of diversity management from The George Washington University in Washington D.C. Dr. Harris is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., where she has held a number of leadership positions.
“My vision for the School of Business is that it provides competitive offerings that position our students to thrive and excel in the global economy as servant leaders who are great stewards of our society's resources,” said Dr. Harris. “In addition I would like for the School of Business to be a great partner to all its stakeholders, especially those in the region.”
