The university community is welcoming Todd Shawver as the new Dean of the College of Business.
Shawver, who is originally from New Hampshire, moved to Pennsylvania just over 23 years ago to spend most of his career in the accounting field.
He was motivated to move into education due to challenging business experiences he witnessed firsthand.
“After working for quite a few businesses that were failing over the years, I decided to hop into higher education and teach students how not to have their business fail,” Shawver said.
Shawver worked for multiple companies, from small startup firms to Fortune 500 companies in the tech industry.
However, Shawver enjoys his switch to higher education as a change of pace. He most recently served as Dean of the Zeigler College of Business at Commonwealth University.
“I wanted to move into the role of the dean because, you know, it was an opportunity to utilize, really, my experiences over the years in the corporate world and apply that in the higher education setting,” Shawver said.
Being a dean of business was always an interest to Shawver because of his desire to help students develop knowledge and skills before their future careers.
Shawver said he learned through experience that sound leadership is essential. He said utilizing his experience in accounting and cost accounting, specifically focusing on the return on investment concept, is his leadership focus.
“My leadership style is I always have an open-door policy. So, if anybody wants to talk, whether it be a student, faculty, staff, whoever it is, I always make sure I keep that open door policy,” Shawver said.
Shawver said it’s crucial to stay open and transparent.
“In the operations of the college, in the university and make sure that we are all working towards a common goal and very mission-driven,” Shawver said.
Shawver said Misericordia stood out because of its mission statement and the four charisms of the Sisters of Mercy: mercy, service, justice and hospitality.
“I knew what Misericordia was all about, and the alignments between mission, momentum and opportunity they have,” Shawver said.
Shawver believes that the charisms align with his own leadership style, and he wants to shape students into leaders who will act with integrity and uplift others.
“I was also drawn to the opportunity to build on the strong foundation and elevate the College of Business in ways that reflect both that market relevance and mission impact,” Shawver said.
Shawver’s initial goals and priorities are getting to know the community first.
He plans to connect with faculty and staff, and he will organize a student advisory group to foster learning and understanding.
Shawver also wants to ensure a workforce focus.
“Sustainability, in higher education it requires new thinking, so developing alternative streams of revenue through executive education, professional certificates, corporate training, partnerships,” he said.
Ensuring that new programs are in demand in the market is also important, he said.
“For instance, you know the supply chain program that currently exists at Misericordia, [to] help expand upon that,” Shawver said.
Shawver thinks the College of Business is going to evolve into a highly differentiated college, one that is market responsive and student-centered.
“Expand on that, create a college that is known for not only academic excellence but for outcomes, innovation, impact to the communities,” Shawver said.
Shawver also plans to support internships by helping students partner with companies to develop projects and gain real-world experience.
Shawver believes that hands-on learning is essential to student success.
“Where students don’t just study the business, they practice it. So that comes along with applied projects, possibly doing some consulting projects with organizations out there to help build those connections,” Shawver said.
He said it’s crucial to develop small businesses at the university, such as the Cougar Candy Company.
He said he’s looking forward to engaging with students.
“I can tell that there’s huge potential in the students, and I want to help make sure I help unlock that potential.”
Shawver has seen during his years in education that students are driven to succeed and care about making a difference, and he encourages that growth at Misericordia.
“I want to help Misericordia develop those strong leadership skills within students and develop programs that are going to be to get them jobs when they graduate,” he said.
Shawver will take his post in July.