GMU names new business school dean

George Mason University has named a new dean to lead its business school.

Ajay Vinzé will start July 1. He served as dean of the University of Missouri’s Trulaske College of Business from 2017 until recently, after he decided to step down to return to teaching and research, according to the university’s website. He currently serves as a professor of accountancy.

Under his leadership, Vinzé helped secure more than $30 million in philanthropic funding for Trulaske, which enrolls more than 4,200 undergraduate and 379 graduate students. The college also began offering online credentials during his tenure and increased experiential learning opportunities for students.

“A trifecta of forces – technology, globalization and changing expectations for higher education (post pandemic) – make these interesting and exciting times,” Vinzé said in a statement announcing his hiring Monday. “ The business school at Mason with its outstanding faculty, dedicated staff and a wonderfully diverse student body is uniquely positioned to take on these challenges. By leveraging public-private-academic partnerships, we will alter the trajectory of business education and lead the way.”

Prior to joining the University of Missouri, Vinzé spent 18 years at Arizona State University, where he served numerous roles, including associate dean for international programs, associate vice provost for graduate education, director of the executive MBA program and the management information doctoral program, as well as a professor at the W.P. Carey School of Business. In May 2016, based on a model Vinzé developed, the MasterCard Foundation awarded ASU a $21.9 million, six-year grant focused on promoting post-secondary education in sub-Saharan Africa.

Vinzé completed his doctoral degree at the University of Arizona and received a master’s from the University of Connecticut and bachelor’s from the University of Delhi. Before joining the faculty at Arizona State, he was an assistant and associate professor at the Mays Business School at Texas A & M University.

“Dr. Vinzé is a respected leader, an accomplished scholar and a highly respected citizen of the universities in which he has served,” MU Provost Mark Ginsberg said. “He has built successful academic programs while also working in close alliance with the business communities in Missouri, Arizona and Texas, where he developed deep collaborative relationships with industry and organizational leaders. We are excited that he is joining with us and look forward to welcoming him and his family to the Mason community.”

Vinzé was hired after a national search by committee that included other GMU deans, school spokesperson John Hollis told Virginia Business. He will succeed Maury Peiperl, who has served as dean at the school since 2017 and who will return as a professor in the business school and also serve as a senior fellow in the Office of the Provost.

“It is an honor and privilege for me to serve as the business school dean at this unique juncture,” Vinzé said. “I am looking forward to joining the George Mason family with great enthusiasm and excitement as the University celebrates its 50th anniversary and prepares for the next 50.”

GMU is Virginia’s largest public research university and enrolls more than 39,000 students from 130 countries and all 50 states.