With approval from University of Delaware President Laura Carlson and Interim Provost Bill Farquhar, the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics has appointed four faculty leaders to guide key departments and the newly established Neil Book School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship as part of the college’s academic reorganization.
Effective July 1, 2026, Dan Freeman will serve as director of the Neil Book School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, while Uma Velury, Gang Wang and Michal Herzenstein will serve as chairpersons of the Departments of Accounting, Business Analytics, Operations, and Information Technology, and Marketing, Management, and Global Business, respectively.
The appointments coincide with the implementation of Lerner’s new academic structure, which was approved by UD’s Board of Trustees on May 11. The Lerner College will now transition from five academic departments to six and formally establish the Book School, creating a structure designed to strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration, support emerging areas of business education and advance Lerner’s strategic priorities.
“These appointments represent an important milestone in the implementation of Lerner’s strategic plan,” said Oliver Yao, dean of the Lerner College. “Dan, Uma, Gang and Michal are accomplished scholars, educators and leaders who bring deep expertise and a shared commitment to student success, impactful research and meaningful engagement with industry. Their leadership will help position Lerner for continued growth and innovation.”
Leading the Neil Book School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Freeman, who joined UD in 2000, has played a pivotal role in the growth of entrepreneurship education and venture development at the University. As a faculty member and leader within Horn Entrepreneurship, he has helped expand experiential learning opportunities, strengthen partnerships with entrepreneurs and industry leaders, and support student venture creation.
As director of the Neil Book School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Freeman will oversee the school’s academic programs, research initiatives and community partnerships while advancing its mission of fostering entrepreneurial thinking and innovation across disciplines.
Guiding accounting’s next chapter
Velury brings more than 25 years of service to Lerner and UD to her role as chairperson of the Department of Accounting. Since joining the University in 1999, she has built a distinguished research record focused on audit quality and earnings quality. Her scholarship has earned national recognition, including the Auditing: A Journal of Practice & Theory Best Paper Award, more than 10,000 downloads and citations by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.
Velury has also provided extensive leadership through service to the department, college, university and profession, including chairing the department’s Promotion and Tenure Committee, leading faculty searches and serving in leadership positions within the American Accounting Association’s Auditing Section.
Advancing analytics, operations, and technology
Wang, a faculty member at UD since 2015, will lead the newly created Department of Business Analytics, Operations, and Information Technology. His research examines digital platforms, emerging technology adoption and the societal impact of information technology, with publications in leading journals including Management Science, Information Systems Research and MIS Quarterly.
As co-director of the FinTech Innovation Hub, Wang has helped advance interdisciplinary collaboration, industry engagement and academic programming in financial technology and data-driven innovation. He also played a key role in developing Lerner’s master’s program in Applied AI in Business and creating courses focused on machine learning and data-driven causal inference.
Strengthening marketing, management, and global business
Herzenstein will lead the Department of Marketing, Management, and Global Business after serving as interim chair during the transition to the new department structure. Since joining UD in 2006, she has built an internationally recognized research portfolio spanning consumer behavior, innovation, financial decision-making, peer-to-peer lending and text analysis.
Her scholarship has appeared in leading journals including the Journal of Marketing Research and Psychological Science, and she received the 2024 Weitz-Winer-O’Dell Award for long-term impact in marketing research. Herzenstein has also served in numerous leadership roles across the college, including interim chairperson of the former Department of Business Administration, marketing area head and chair of the Lerner organizational structure committee.
Together, these appointments position Lerner to advance its strategic vision while strengthening the college’s focus on innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration and academic excellence. As the reorganization takes effect, the new department leaders will help guide faculty, staff and students through the transition while expanding opportunities for research, experiential learning and industry engagement.