LOS ANGELES, April 8, 2014 – According to the PhD Project — an award-winning program to create more diversity among business school professors and corporate leaders in America — there are only 40 female Hispanic-American management professors teaching in business schools in the U.S.
Loyola Marymount University’s Patricia Martinez is a member of this elite group. Martinez earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and a doctorate in management from UC Irvine. She was recently awarded tenure as an associate professor of management at LMU’s College of Business Administration. Her areas of expertise include human resource management and organizational behavior.
A graduate of The PhD Project, Martinez wants to see more African-American, Hispanic-American and Native-American academics follow her footsteps into the world of business and finance to become role models who will encourage more minority students to study management, marketing, accounting and entrepreneurship.
“The more women and minorities that occupy visible positions of authority in organizations,” said Martinez, “ the clearer the message will be for the next generation of women and minorities to realize just how far they can go in their careers. I look forward to many years of continuing to be a part of this message.”
Martinez’s way of giving back to the PhD Project has been as a member of the organization’s Management Doctoral Students Association for several years, first as a doctoral student and currently as a faculty member.
As the first person in her family to attend college, every time she stands in front of a new group of students, Martinez feels she is sharing that message to her female and minority students.
“I think back to my first day in the classroom as a full-fledged tenure-track faculty member,” she said. “I had the sensation of all the young Latina students smiling at me. I realized it was because they were looking at someone who was just like them, someone who represented what they could achieve.”
Each year, highly qualified professionals such as Martinez, who are considering entering doctoral programs in business, are provided with the tools and resources for the application/admission process. They also receive continuing support from the PhD Project — through group meetings and conferences — as they pursue their studies.
Since its inception, The PhD Project has been responsible for a 418 percent increase in minority business professors from 294 in 1994 to 1,230 today. There are currently 336 minority students enrolled in doctoral programs.
“We are so proud of Professor Martinez,” said Bernard J. Milano, president of The PhD Project and president of the KPMG Foundation, founder and lead funder of the program. “Through her demonstrated dedication, hard work and intelligence she is influencing the next generation of business leaders as she continues on her impressive career path. We look forward to following her success and working along with her to promote the success of future business leaders.”
