Former Penn State Professor Focuses on Connections Between Philanthropy and Business
INDIANAPOLIS-The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University and the IU Kelley School of Business Indianapolis will celebrate the selection of former Pennsylvania State University business professor Philip L. Cochran as the new Thomas W. Binford Chair in Corporate Citizenship with a reception in Indianapolis today.
The Binford Chair is named for Indianapolis business leader Tom Binford, who embodied the ideal of corporate citizenship by balancing his stewardship of Indiana National Bank and other business interests with civic duties ranging from heading the Indianapolis 500 and Indiana Pacers to civil rights activism, philanthropy and higher education. The Binford Chair was conceived as a way to honor Binford's civic engagement and vision and is the result of the generosity of his corporate friends and a joint development campaign by the Center on Philanthropy and the Kelley School of Business Indianapolis.
Cochran is teaching two existing business courses during the spring semester and is developing a new course in corporate citizenship for fall 2003. Cochran will teach as both a management professor for the Kelley School of Business Indianapolis and as a member of the Philanthropic Studies faculty for the Center on Philanthropy. The Binford Chair is one of four endowed chairs associated with the Center on Philanthropy as part of an ongoing effort to give a permanent faculty focus to several important issues in philanthropy and nonprofit organizations.
"Corporate philanthropy and civic involvement play an important role in the vitality of communities nationwide. Phil Cochran is one of only a few people in the country who are actively engaged in studying this subject," said Gene Tempel, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy. "As the Binford Chair, he will be an invaluable resource for examining the connections between philanthropy and business and involving more business people, scholars and nonprofit professionals in debating these issues."
Cochran is a 25-year member of the Pennsylvania State University business faculty at both the undergraduate and MBA levels. The founding President of the International Association for Business and Society, his teaching and research focuses on corporate social responsibility, business ethics and corporate strategy. He recently received the Sumner Marcus Award, presented annually by the Social Issues in Management Division of the Academy of Management. The award honors substantial and significant contributions to the division and the field of social issues in management, business and society.
"It's great to have Phil on board," said John Hassell, acting Dean of Kelley Indianapolis. "We've always made a point that proper ethics are an integral part of the Kelley School's curriculum, inseparable from other issues. But now more than ever, with so much attention focused on corporate reform and the balance between bottom line and social responsibility, Phil's expertise will serve our students and our community well."
Cochran also is enthusiastic about his new role.
"Being affiliated with a top-25 business program and the esteemed Center on Philanthropy with the ability to focus on my chosen areas of research and teaching presents a new set of exciting career challenges," he said.
"My early training was in engineering," Cochran continued. "I was drawn to the study of corporate citizenship and social responsibility because there are infinite issues to explore - unlike engineering, there are few easy, black-and-white areas."
"The economic boom of the 1990s led people to ignore many issues of corporate ethics," said Cochran, sharing his thoughts on the future of his work. "The recession has highlighted many corporate abuses because economic hardship heightens public outrage. The challenge going forward will be drawing attention to issues of corporate citizenship and social responsibility as the economy improves, and examining emerging issues before they make headlines."
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