CCU's Wall College of Business names interim deans
Stowe, who was president and chief executive officer of Canal Industries Inc. from 1997 to 2005, will serve as Acting Dean. He will be responsible for the external activities of the college, primarily focusing on development and fundraising.
Wathen, a professor of management who joined the Coastal faculty in 1993, will serve as Interim Dean, Operations, responsible for the day-to-day administration of the college.
Prior to joining Canal Industries, the Conway-based timber products company founded by Craig Wall Sr., Stowe was executive vice president of CSI Group Inc. of Conway. During his distinguished career he also served as an executive with the Springs Company of Lancaster and Fort Mill and with NCNB in Charlotte. Active in civic affairs, he has served as chairman of the board of trustees of Conway Hospital and as chairman of the Myrtle Beach Air Base Redevelopment Authority, as well as a member of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education Business Advisory Council and the Wall College of Business Board of Visitors. Stowe earned a bachelor's degree in commerce from Washington and Lee University in 1968 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1970.
Wathen teaches in the area of design and management of manufacturing and service operations. His research focuses on teaching methods that promote active student learning, and he has published extensively in the areas of manufacturing strategy, service process design and productivity. Wathen earned a bachelor's degree in forestry from the University of Illinois in 1975, an MBA from Oklahoma State University in 1982 and a Ph.D. in business administration from the University of Minnesota in 1988. He has served as associate dean of the Wall College of Business since 2004.
Wathen begins his new duties May 15; Stowe starts on June 1.