LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- A Rider University professor's study of methods aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of teachers will be put to the test through a prestigious grant awarded by the University's College of Business Administration (CBA).

Dr. Jean C. Darian (left), associate professor of marketing, has been named the seventh recipient of the Jesse H. Harper Endowed Professorship.

In the fall of 1994, Rider received a $1.83 million bequest from the estate of Lois A. Harper establishing the endowed professorships in memory of her husband, a 1949 graduate. The purpose of these professorships is to enhance teaching at the University's business college and improve the instructional program through professional development of its faculty.

Dr. Darian, a resident of Mount Laurel, NJ and member of the CBA faculty since 1983, will use the grant to implement a proposal titled "Faculty Development for Enhancement of Teaching Effectiveness." The program will cover how to effectively work with groups, how to develop leadership, team, and interpersonal skills, understanding how students learn, and how to motivate students.

Four major types of activities will form the content of the program. The first will be to collect, process, and disseminate information from students, faculty, and research studies in order to help faculty highlight areas where improvement is needed. This will be followed by workshops that will be responsive to faculty needs. The third step will be the solicitation and coordination of peer presentations and discussion group meetings prior to and following the workshops for faculty members to share problems and solutions to generate new ideas. The final activity will be the planning of follow-up activities for the 1998-99 academic year.

Dr. Darian holds a Ph.D. in demography from the University of Pennsylvania. She received both a B.A. and M.C.D. from the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom. She is a member of the American Marketing Association and the Association for Consumer Research, and locally serves as a member of the Haddonfield branch of Amnesty International.

The six Harper recipients preceding Dr. Darian are: Dr. Hope Corman, economics; Dr. Ronald Cook, management; Dr. Sigfredo Hernandez, marketing; Dr. Biju Mathew, computer information systems; Dr. Anne Carroll, finance; and Dr. Radha Chaganti, business policy and environment.