Page 10 - Endowed Professorships | Simon Business School

cLiFFOrd W. sMith

LOUISE AND HENRY EPSTEIN PROFESSOR
of Business Administration

Saying that Cliford Smith stands apart as one of the Simon School’s

most respected and revered professors is no overstatement. Just ask
his students.

Smith has been honored with Simon’s Superior Teaching Award
a whopping 32 times by students in the MBA and Executive

MBA programs.

The late Henry Epstein ’80S (MBA) went a step further to pay
tribute to Smith. Henry and his wife, Louise, established an endowed
professorship to honor both the school and Professor Smith.

Epstein, a giant in the ofce supply industry, credited Smith and others

with giving him the tools to navigate a competitive business landscape.

“Henry got so much out of the program,” Louise recalls. “It changed his

way of thinking and how he addressed his business. Much of that was
because of Clif Smith.”

Smith joined the Simon School faculty in 1974. He sees the
professorship he holds as validation of his long-term commitment

to blending teaching with research.

“Endowed professorships allow us to go toe-to-toe with places like
Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Chicago, and Wharton and compete favorably
E
for talented faculty,” he notes. “That’s what makes a business

school exceptional.”