Meet the 8 New Faculty Members Joining UVA Darden

New students aren’t the only fresh faces on Grounds this year. We’re also welcoming an impressive group of professors.

Eight scholars have joined the University of Virginia Darden School of Business ahead of the 2024-25 academic year. They bring valuable knowledge in key areas such as finance, accounting, marketing, business operations, strategy and data analysis.

Let’s meet them:

Ramona Dagostino, Assistant Professor, Finance Area

Before Darden: Ramona joins Darden from Simon Business School, University of Rochester, where she was an Assistant Professor. She earned her PhD in finance from London Business School.

Research: Ramona’s research focuses on banking, political economy and municipal finance.

Classroom:  She will teach in the core finance course and an elective on Impact Investing.

Learn more about Ramona: On her Google Scholar page.

Tom Davenport, Visiting Scholar, Bodily Bicentennial Professor in Analytics

Before Darden: Tom joins Darden while maintaining his role as President’s Distinguished Professor of Information Technology and Management at Babson College. He earned his PhD from Harvard University.

Focus: Tom will concentrate on writing, industry research and curriculum development. He is known for his pioneering work on “competing on analytics.”  His most recent book is “The AI Advantage: How to Put the Artificial Intelligence Revolution to Work.”

Learn more about Tom: On his personal website.

Pnina Feldman, tenured Associate Professor, Technology and Operations Management Area

Before Darden: Pnina joins Darden from Boston University, where she was on the faculty in the Operations and Technology Management area. She earned her PhD in operations and information management from The Wharton School.

Research: Pnina’s research addresses the impact of consumer behavior on pricing and operational decisions, with applications in retail, services, and platforms. Her work also explores the policy implications of these decisions.

Classroom: She will teach core operations management courses.

Learn more about Pnina: On her personal website.

Rita Gunn, Assistant Professor, Accounting Area

Before Darden: Rita comes to Darden from Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. She earned her PhD in accounting from Northwestern University.

Research: Rita examines the impacts of mergers and acquisitions on financial reporting and capital markets.

Classroom: She will teach in the first-year accounting course.

Learn more about Rita: On her LinkedIn page.

Ray Charles “Chuck” Howard, Associate Professor, Marketing Area

Before Darden: Chuck joins Darden from the Mays School of Business at Texas A&M University where he was on the faculty. He received his PhD in marketing from the University of British Columbia.

Research: Chuck’s research interests focus on misprediction in financial decision-making and social contexts.

Classroom: He will teach a marketing analytics elective.

Learn more about Chuck: On his Google Scholar page.

Sam Levy, Assistant Professor, Marketing Area

Before Darden: Sam comes to Darden after earning his PhD in marketing from Carnegie Mellon University.

Research: Sam’s research investigates customer analytics in different contexts such as privacy, data fusion and pro-social behavior.

Classroom: He will teach core marketing courses.

Learn more about Sam: On his personal website.

Rory McDonald, tenured Associate Professor, Strategy, Ethics & Entrepreneurship Area

Before Darden: Rory joins Darden after serving as an Associate Professor of business administration at Harvard Business School. He received his PhD in management science and engineering from Stanford University.

Research: Rory studies how firms successfully navigate new markets.

Classroom: He will teach core strategy in the part-time program and an elective on disruptive strategy in the part-time and EMBA formats.

Learn more about Rory: On his Google Scholar page.

Chris Parker, tenured Associate Professor, Technology and Operations Management Area

Before Darden: Chris comes to Darden from American University, where he was an Associate Professor in the Department of Technology and Analytics. He received his PhD in management science and operations from the London School of Business.

Research: Chris’s research focuses on how IT-enabled applications are changing consumer behavior and how firms interact with their customers.

Classroom: He will teach core operations management courses.

Learn more about Chris: On his personal website and Google Scholar page.