Ron Magnuson
Director of MBA and Professional Programs
Ron Magnuson has been the Director of MBA and Professional Programs at the College of Charleston since 2018. Prior to working at the College, Ron worked at the University of Pittsburgh where he began working in 2007 as the Director of Administration for the Katz Graduate School of Business. He also taught Business Ethics and Labor Relations as an adjunct. In 2014, Ron was appointed to a full-time faculty position as Clinical Assistant Professor. In this position, he was responsible for teaching and coordinating the MBA Management Simulation Capstone course and taught Consulting Field Projects.
Ron spent most of his career in the corporate world. After receiving his Electrical Engineering degree from Bucknell University, he worked as an engineer for two different utility companies. He then earned an MBA and was appointed to various management positions at Allegheny Energy. His two key executive positions were the Executive Director of Human Resources and Vice President of the Customer Business Unit. Ron participated in several external management development programs including the Advanced Management Program at Wharton. He has always been very involved in community and industry organizations and was a member of several Boards of Directors. He was the Chairman of the Energy Association of Pennsylvania, the Marketing Executive Conference, and the Pitt Greensburg Advisory Board. The latter gave Ron the opportunity to be a member of the University of Pittsburgh Board of Trustees.
Ron is very active in the Association of Business Simulations and Experiential Learning (ABSEL) where he currently serves as past president. Ron is a father of five children and has six grandchildren. He and his wife, Charlene, reside in Daniel Island, SC.
Education
- Six Sigma Problem Solving, 2006
- Advanced Management, Wharton, 2000
- Negotiations and Employee Discipline, University of Michigan, 1993
- Electric Utility Management, Baylor University, 1990
- Masters of Business Administration, Mount St. Mary’s College, 1984
- Bachelor of Science, Electrical Engineering, Bucknell University, 1978
Courses Taught
- MBAD 590 Integrated Capstone
Honors and Awards
- President’s Medal for Distinguished Service; University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg (2007)
- Katz Graduate School of Business Excellence in Teaching Award (2013)
- Best Reviewer Award; ABSEL Conference; Experiential Track (2017)
Publications
Tom Davis and Ronald Magnuson (2020), “Extending the Experience – Bringing Boards of Directors to Bear on a Business Simulation”, Presented at the 2020 Association for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning Conference, Virtual Conference. Published in Developments in Business Simulations and Experiential Learning (47). Received Best Paper Award
Kaylee M. Philbrick, Kiersten M. Maryott, and Ronald Magnuson (2017), “Using Experience-Based Learning to Enhance Student Success: Step 1—Exploratory Research to Identify Discipline-Specific Competencies,” Presented at the 2017 Association for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning Conference, Myrtle Beach, SC. Published in Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning (44). Nominated for Best Paper (Received Best Student Paper Award)
Ronald Magnuson and Debbie Good (2017), “It’s More Than Just a Simulation: Deepening and Broadening Student Learning by Using a Business Enterprise Simulation as a Platform” Presented at the 2017 Association for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning Conference, Myrtle Beach, SC. Published in Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning (44). Nominated for Best Paper