Brandon Davidson, MBA’25, MS’25, BS’06, has long been a fixture around the Naveen Jindal School of Management, as many people in this school remember.

While working on his undergraduate degree at The University of Texas at Dallas, he started working part-time in 2003 in the building. He joined the operations team full-time once he completed his undergraduate degree. He now manages Technology and Facilities Services, one of the largest departments within the Jindal School, and is the go-to guy when anyone needs help with an issue related to the building.

And now he is the school’s latest double major alumnus.

“The most challenging and rewarding part of my job is managing a large number of projects for one of the fastest-growing business schools in the nation,” said Davidson, who graduated in May.

“It’s a privilege to contribute to this school’s success, especially knowing that my work helps shape the Jindal School’s reputation. Of course, that increases the value of my own degrees.

“Also, my Jindal School role holds personal significance for me — I met my wife here, and for that, I’ll always be grateful,” he said.

Florent (A.C.) Ndindjock, MBA’22, BS’18, has been named by Risk & Insurance Magazine as one of six 2025 Risk & Insurance Power Brokers® in the international category. Ndindjock is vice president and a client advisor at Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advising firm based in Apex, N.C.

According to the website, “a Risk & Insurance Power Broker® is an individual who stands out among their peers for the exceptional client work they have delivered over the past year. While brokers play many key roles in the insurance industry and risk profession, a Power Broker® award recognizes problem solving, customer service and industry knowledge.”

“I am honored to receive the 2025 Power Broker Award from Risk & Insurance,” said Ndindjock, whose undergraduate degree was in business administration with a concentration in risk management and insurance. “This recognition is not just a personal achievement; it reflects the hard work and dedication of my entire team. I owe a great deal of my success to the exceptional education and experiences I gained at the Jindal School. The rigorous curriculum and emphasis on real-world applications equipped me with the skills and insights necessary to navigate the complexities of the risk management and international insurance landscape. This award inspires me to continue striving for excellence and to contribute positively to our industry.”

Several faculty members from the Naveen Jindal School of Management were honored April 24 at The University of Texas at Dallas’ Eighth Annual Celebration of Teaching Excellence. UT Dallas President Richard C. Benson and Provost Inga H. Musselman presented faculty and staff with their awards.

Dr. Sonia Leach, a clinical professor, in the Jindal School’s Operations Management Area, won the President’s Teaching Excellence Award, Graduate/ Professional Instruction.

Leach teaches statistics, operations management and supply chain management to more than 500 Jindal School master’s and executive education students each year. Formerly an active-duty officer in the U.S. Air Force for 20 years, Leach’s professional experience enables her to blend practical application with academic rigor.

Rita Egeland, a lecturer in the Jindal School’s Marketing Area, won the President’s Teaching Excellence Award, Part-time Instruction.

In her courses, Egeland emphasizes practical marketing, emerging technologies, cross-functional collaboration, networking and career guidance to prepare Jindal School students for success.

Dr. Vijay Mookerjee, Charles and Nancy Davidson Distinguished Chair and a professor in the Jindal School’s Information Systems Area, won the Provost Award for Graduate Research Mentoring.

Mookerjee researches digital advertising, cloud computing, fintech, software development, and information systems economics. An INFORMS Fellow, he edits top journals, co-directs the Jindal School’s DBA Program and Financial and Digital Assets Center. He credits much of his success to the exceptional doctoral students he mentors, as well as to the Jindal School’s uniquely collaborative and intellectually vibrant environment.

Dr. Maria Hasenhuttl, an associate professor of instruction in the Jindal School’s Organizations, Strategy and International Management Area, won the CTL Outstanding Service Award from the Center for Teaching and Learning.

Known for her passion for supporting neurodivergent students, Hasenhuttl has led CTL workshops, organized panels for Neurodiversity Week and actively engages in faculty development programs.

Dr. Ying Xie, a professor in the Jindal School’s Marketing Area, and Dr. Yiyi Li, PhD’17, a Jindal School alumna who is now an assistant professor at UT Arlington, won the 2025 Weitz-Winer-O’Dell Award from the Journal of Marketing Research (JMR), for a paper titled “Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? An Empirical Study of Image Content and Social Media Engagement.” The award, according to a news release by JMR, honors a journal article “published five years ago that has made the most significant, long-term contribution to marketing theory, methodology, and/or practice.” The award committee wrote that study is one of the early attempts in Marketing to apply machine learning techniques for analyzing image content and its downstream impact on social media engagement.”

A team of undergraduate business analytics JSOM students competed recently in the National Collegiate Consulting Championship at Baylor University and were runners-up.

An undergraduate team from the Jindal School’s Computer Information Systems & Technology program competed in the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management CoMIS 2025 case competition and were first runners-up.

Two Jindal School teams competed in the UT Arlington Student Analytics Competition this March. They took first and third place.

The Jindal School hosted the 2025 Future Business Leaders of America-Collegiate (FBLA) State Leadership Conference (SLC) in Feb. Jindal School students planned the conference and also competed. UT Dallas students excelled, winning 22 first places, 12 second places, 4 third places, and 4 fourth places.