Smith’s Roland Rust has been named a 2025 ISSIP Fellow for pioneering contributions to service research, including founding key conferences and journals, and advancing AI scholarship in the field. He ranks among the world’s top 100 business research scientists.

Lemma Senbet, Dean’s Chaired Professor of Finance at Smith, received the African Economic Research Consortium’s Distinguished Service Award for his longstanding contributions to economic research, policy, and capacity building across Africa. He was also recently appointed to the Bretton Woods Committee.

The Smith School has awarded 2025 Smith Internal Research Grants to 20 faculty-led teams to support high-impact research in areas including AI, entrepreneurship, labor markets, corporate communication, and online learning, fostering innovation across disciplines.

Smith School professors earned AI research seed grants from UMD’s AIM Institute. Louiqa Raschid and Eaman Jahani will use AI for public health; Lauren Rhue will explore legal limits of AI-generated content. AIM awarded 22 grants across interdisciplinary categories.

Smith School associate professors Liye Ma and Bobby Zhou were named 2024 MSI Scholars by the Marketing Science Institute, recognizing their influential research. The honor fosters collaboration among mid-career marketing academics, shaping the field’s future through scholarship and real-world impact.

Rebecca Ratner, dean’s professor of marketing, is serving as president of the Association for Consumer Research, leading efforts to expand member engagement, professionalize operations and amplify research impact. She will deliver her presidential address at ACR 2025 in Washington, D.C.

Smith School professor Vijaya Venkataramani, a 2024 Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award recipient, shared insights on workplace creativity during her lecture. She explored how social networks, team dynamics and leadership influence innovation, emphasizing the importance of inclusivity and psychological safety.

The AMA TechSIG honored Smith’s P.K. Kannan with its inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award for his impactful research in marketing technology and innovation. Kannan, an expert in digital marketing and AI, shared the recognition with USC’s Gerard Tellis at the AMA Winter Conference.

Maryland Smith finance professor Lemma W. Senbet received the Ethiopian Crown’s Victory of Adwa Medal for his contributions to his native country. Senbet, an expert and leader in economic policy in Africa, is the William E. Mayer Chair Professor of Finance and the founding director of Smith’s Center for Financial Policy.

Amna Kirmani, the Ralph J. Tyser Professor of Marketing at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, was named a 2022 fellow of the Society for Consumer Psychology. Her appointment was announced at the academic and practitioner group’s annual conference on March 4.