Gray Named Interim Dean of UA’s Culverhouse

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. J. Brian Gray has been named interim dean of The University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Commerce.

The appointment is effective July 1.

“Brian has a wealth of administrative, teaching and research experience and will be an effective leader during this important, transitional period for the College,” said Dr. Joe Benson, UA interim provost, in making the announcement.

Gray fills the role while UA carries out a national search for a new dean to replace Dr. J. Michael Hardin, who steps down June 30 to become provost at Samford University.

Gray, associate dean of the Manderson Graduate School of Business in the Culverhouse College of Commerce, joined UA in 1990. Also serving as the Harrison Family Teaching Excellence Faculty Fellow and professor of statistics in the department of information systems, statistics and management science, Gray has received multiple teaching awards. These include the UA National Alumni Association Outstanding Commitment to Teaching Award in 2006.

His research interests include applied statistics, exploratory data analysis, data mining, business analytics, regression analysis, statistical computing and statistical graphics. He has published his research in various academic journals, and he’s co-authored two books, “Basic Statistical Ideas for Managers (Second Edition)” and “Business Cases in Statistical Decision Making: Computer Based Applications.”

Before joining UA, Gray served seven years as a faculty member in the department of finance and decision sciences at Texas Christian University.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, with minors in business administration and computer science, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1978. He earned master’s and doctoral degrees in mathematical sciences from Clemson University in 1980 and 1983, respectively.