College of Business & Entrepreneurship

Vikram Gulati, BS, MBA, PhDDean of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Chair of the Department of Management, Assistant Professor of Management

Vikram Gulati transitioned to academia in 2019 after more than thirty years in leadership roles in the information technology (IT) services industry. During his industry career, he served as CEO of multiple IT services organizations, leading teams ranging from small startup operations to global enterprises employing more than three thousand people.

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Dennis P. Heaton, EdD Dean Emeritus of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Professor of Management

Dennis Heaton earned his EdD in educational leadership. His areas of research interest include consciousness, holistic health, peak performance, and higher stages of human development and their implications for leadership. Dr. Heaton is Professor of Management and Dean Emeritus of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship. He has been directing PhD students’ research in areas of socially and environmentally responsible business, including responsible AI, financial impacts of responsible management, sustainable ethnic tourism, the effects of green buildings on human resources, consumer attitudes toward genetically modified food, moral development and ethical decision-making in accountants, and the role of human resource management in implementing sustainability.

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Yick Oi Janet Ho, PhDAssociate Dean of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Assistant Professor of Management

Yick Oi Janet Ho has been a Curriculum Developer and Coordinator of educational programs for students with special needs in Hong Kong. She was later honored with the Distinguished Service Award by the Hong Kong Red Cross. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Pontifical Urbaniana University and bachelor's and master's degrees in education from Hong Kong Baptist University. She received an MA in Maharishi Vedic Science, an MBA, and a PhD in Management from MIU.

Michael Zwell, PhDChair of the Department of Emergence Coaching and Leadership, Professor of Transformational Leadership and Coaching

Michael Zwell, Ph.D., is Professor of Transformational Leadership and Coaching at MIU, and was Chancellor and co-founder of the Wright Graduate University for the Realization of Human Potential. He is also Managing Director of the Human Emergence Group. He is a certified coach for the Great Game of Business, a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), and immediate past President of the Graduate School Alliance for Education in Coaching. The author of several books, he has a Ph.D. from Yale University and an A.B. from the University of Chicago. He is Director of MIU’s Ed.D. program in Transformational Leadership and Coaching.

Naveed Abbasi, MBA Chair of the Department and Instructor of Business Analytics and Technology, Director of the Professionals MBA with Speicalization in ERP & Analytics

Professor Naveed Abbasi is Assistant Professor of Business Administration. He earned a BS in Accounting from Oxford Brookes University, a BS in Accounting, Auditing, and Taxation from the University of Karachi, and an MBA from Maharishi University of Management. Naveed brings more than 10 years of valuable experience in implementing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems for multi-national corporations. Besides teaching SAP courses, he teaches financial modeling and data analysis.

Victoria Alexander Herriott, JD, LLM Director of the MA in Consciousness-Based Leadership & Coaching and Professor of Law and Government

Victoria (Vicki) Alexander Herriott graduated as a Durant Scholar with a BA in Psychology from Wellesley College, then received a JD from Boston University of Law and an LLM in Taxation from New York University School of Law. She worked as a tax associate with Sullivan and Worcester, a large Boston law firm. She teaches Business Law, Taxation, Human Resource Management, Mediation and Negotiation, and Environmental Law. She is also the coach of the MIU mediation team and serves on the Board of Directors of the Fairfield Arts and Convention Center, the Institute for Bio-Integrity, and the International Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education.

Jane Schmidt-Wilk, PhDDirector of the PhD in Management, Professor of Management

Jane Schmidt-Wilk is Professor of Management, Dean of Teaching and Learning, and Director of the PhD in Management at Maharishi International University. Her publications explore the role of the development of consciousness in business and management education. Dr. Schmidt-Wilk has taught courses in management and organizational behavior, qualitative research methods, communication skills, teaching, and academic writing. As Dean of Teaching and Learning, she develops faculty development programs in Consciousness-Based Education for MIU faculty. Curriculum Vitae >

Ayako Huang, PhD Director of the MBA in Sustainable Business, Associate Professor of Management

Ayako Huang holds a PhD in Management from Maharishi International University and a Master of Public Administration and a BA in Business Administration from Eastern Washington University. She is an academic executive specializing in sustainable mindset development and an inside-out spiritual approach to management and leadership.

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Lisa Sanden, EdDDirector of the EdD in Transformational Leadership & Coaching, Associate Professor of Transformational Leadership & Coaching

Dr. Sanden is the Program Director and an Associate Professor of Transformational Leadership and Coaching. She was previously the Chief Academic Officer of the Wright Graduate University for the Realization of Human Potential. In addition to her work with MIU, she is also a Montessori consultant and speaker, a corporate trainer with the Human Emergence Group, and a coach with over 10 years-experience. Her master’s and doctorate are in Transformational Leadership and Coaching.

David Weisman, MBA, MA, MFA Director of the BA in Business & Entrepreneurship, Assistant Professor of Business Administration

David Weisman is a passionate educator with a gift for conveying things simply and elegantly, and for involving students in the learning process. A skilled college educator, business person, creative marketer, writer and entrepreneur with experience and expertise in a diverse range of business and educational areas, David teaches principles of business success, marketing, entrepreneurship, and leadership.

Winston Mohammed, DBADirector of the BA in Business & Entrepreneurship for South Africa, Assistant Professor of Management

Winston Mohammad has over 20 years of executive management experience in the heavy industry contractor maintenance and plant pre-commissioning sector specializing in methanol, ammonia, fertilizer, and liquified natural gas plants. Over 15 years of small business entrepreneurship and business development experience in multiple business sectors, including telecommunications, cosmetics, non-alcoholic beverages, retail pet supplies, family entertainment, and fast food delivery fleet supply and maintenance. Three years of senior management plantation experience in the large-scale cultivation and harvesting of sugar cane.

William W. Graff, MBA, CPA, CMADirector of the Professionals MBA in Accounting, Assistant Professor of Accounting

William Graff has extensive experience in teaching internationally. He has been teaching at the University’s partner institution in China and has previously been the director of the Maharishi School of Management in Limuru, Kenya. Professor Graff has consulted with the World Bank on finance and accounting systems for the government of Uganda. His continuing research interests include the implications of Accounting as a self-referral feedback system and the experience of Transcendental Consciousness as the basis for business success.

Nakita Bruno Green, PhD Associate Director of the PhD in Management, Assistant Professor of Management

Nakita Bruno-Green received her BA from the University of Mississippi and her MBA and PhD degrees from MIU. She is a member of the Academy of Management and The Global Union of Scientists for World Peace. Her PhD research explored why and how the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Young Champions of the Earth create innovations for a flourishing planet and revealed a process model where innovations are created in four stages. Her dissertation research was presented at the annual Academy of Management Conference and the 1st International Academic Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals in Utah. Curriculum Vitae >

Scott R. Herriott, PhDProfessor of Management

Professor Herriott received his PhD in Management Science and Engineering and MA in Educational Administration and Policy Analysis from Stanford University. He is the author of scholarly papers in the areas of economics, organization theory, and business strategy. His most recent books are Feasibility Analysis for Sustainable Technologies and Metrics for Sustainable Business. His research interests include cooperative strategy in business policy. Specific projects include studies of electric utility power pools, cooperative advertising, risk pooling, partial acquisitions, information channels in markets, and the implications of Maharishi Vedic Science for theories of motivation, job design, and management decisions. Curriculum Vitae >

Carolyn King, PhDProfessor of Psychology

Carolyn King is Professor of Psychology, Senior Researcher at Maharishi International University Research Institute, and Chair of the Academic Committee of the MIU Board of Trustees.

Dr. King’s work focuses on health psychology, with an emphasis on stress reduction and the prevention of cardiovascular disease in African American populations through the practice of Transcendental Meditation (TM). She conducted the first federally funded research projects involving the TM technique and continues to be actively engaged in investigations of its effects on physiological and psychological health. She is a co-author on numerous studies published in journals such as American Journal of Hypertension, Circulation, Ethnicity & Disease, Hypertension, International Journal of Psychophysiology, The Lancet Psychiatry, Journal of Clinical Psychology, Cardiology Research & Practice, and Journal of Women’s Health.

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Maxwell Rainforth, PhDProfessor of Statistics

Maxwell Rainforth received his BSc (Hons.) from the University of Canterbury (New Zealand) and his MA, MS, and PhD from Maharishi International University. He teaches courses on research methodology and statistics. He has collaborated with leading researchers to investigate the effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique and has served as a statistician on 22 research studies funded by U.S. government agencies and by private foundations. His research in the fields of business, health, psychology, and education has resulted in over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and conference presentations.

Anil Maheshwari, PhD Research Professor of Management

Anil K. Maheshwari is a Research Fellow in the Department of Management. He has published over 25 research papers and book chapters in the fields of leadership, technology, and consciousness. He is active in the Management, Spirituality and Religion (MSR) division of the Academy of Management. He has taught courses in data analytics, strategic management, leadership, and enterprise performance management. He is the author of a dozen books on technology, management, and spirituality and has 20 years of IT industry experience. He earned a B.Tech. in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, an MBA from Indian Institute of Management, and a Ph.D. in Management from Case Western Reserve University. Curriculum Vitae >

Yunxiang Zhu, MBA, DWPProfessor of Management

Dr. Zhu’s decades of experience cover education, business and high tech industries as well as international art and cultural exchanges. After graduating from Maharishi International University, Zhu worked in Silicon Valley, San Jose, California from 1991 till 2000. He served as system analyst, manager, assistant general manager in small to medium sized companies and as operation officer in the second largest modem and sound cards manufacturer.

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Sabita Sawhney, PhD Associate Professor of Management

Professor Sawhney teaches courses in operations management, supply chain management, marketing management, and marketing research. Her areas of research interest include green supply chains, buyer-supplier partnerships, self-development, and trust. She has presented papers at several prestigious conferences including the Purchasing and Operations Management Society (POMS), the Decision Science Institute (DSI), and the Midwest Business Administration Association (MBAA).

Bruce McCollum, PhD, SRICAssistant Professor of Management

Bruce McCollum has taught courses in management information systems, communications skills, operations management, statistics, and introduction to business courses. He served as director of administration for a branch campus of a university. His dissertation topic was leadership development through self-development. He received his BA (Philosophy), MBA, and PhD from MIU.

Naghmeh Sabermajidi, PhDAssistant Professor of Marketing

Dr. Naghmeh (Melody) Sabermajidi is an Assistant Professor of Marketing. She earned her PhD in Business from Taylor’s University (Malaysia), specializing in Social Media Marketing, and holds an MBA in Multimedia and Marketing from Multimedia University. Her research investigates artificial intelligence in marketing, personalization strategies, and digital consumer behavior within platform-based ecosystems. She examines how AI-enabled systems shape brand strategy, customer engagement, and marketing performance, with particular attention to strategic prompting, algorithmic decision environments, and responsible AI integration.

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Sun Liang, PhD, CFA, FRMAssistant Professor of Finance

Professor Sun Liang, PhD, CFA, FRM, has been on the faculty since 2006. His expertise is in finance. Besides teaching topics in the financial field at the university, Professor Liang is also a practicing portfolio manager. This has made him an experienced professor with practical knowledge in his field. Professor Sun Liang’s research interest is in the field of strategic management and disruptive innovations.

HaiYan Song, PhDAssistant Professor of Management

Dr. Haiyan Song has over 18 years of teaching experience at universities in both China and the United States. Her current primary responsibilities include advising Chinese PhD students on dissertation research and teaching courses such as Sustainability Metrics and greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting. Her research interests and areas of expertise focus on sustainability reporting and strategic management. Dr. Song holds an MA in Applied Linguistics from Wuhan University, P.R. China, and an MBA and PhD from Maharishi International University. She was a U.S. Department of State–supported scholar, administered by the American Councils for International Education, and has published scholarly work in the field of sustainability reporting. Curriculum Vitae >

Richard Thompson, PhDAssistant Professor of Management

Dr. Richard Thompson has been teaching courses at MIU since 1996. He has taught courses in Business Process Improvement, Economics, Management & Organization, and Cross-Cultural Communication; as well as being on the committee for several PhD in Management students. He has been directly involved in establishing MIU’s initial courses in Beijing, South Africa, and Ethiopia. His dissertation topic focused on managing cultural differences in international distance education partnerships. He received his MBA, and PhD from MIU.

Reza Malmir, PhDAssistant Professor of Management

Reza Malmir is an Assistant Professor of Management with a PhD in Management from MIU. His research focuses on Self‑Determination Theory and the motivational foundations of a sense of agency in organizational settings. His doctoral work integrated insights from cognitive science into management research, examining how workplace factors such as uncertainty and interdependence shape individuals’ sense of responsibility. He teaches Financial Management, Critical Thinking, and Critical Thinking in Sustainable Economics, emphasizing the development of students’ analytical reasoning skills.

Alexandre G. Carvalho, LLM, MBAAssistant Professor of Law and Government

Alexandre Carvalho is Assistant Professor of Management. He has a bachelor’s degree in engineering and law from the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), a LL.M. in American Legal System from the Syracuse College of Law, and an MBA from the Getulio Vargas Foundation. Before joining MIU, he had experience in management, insurance regulation for the Brazilian government, business and consumer law, and employment and immigration law in the US. He has an interest in business law, regulation, and privacy law.

Melrose Abbasi, MBAInstructor of Business Analytics and Technology

Teaching courses in Enterprise Resource Planning (SAP S/4HANA), financial modeling, managerial accounting, and computerized accounting systems. Fostering application-focused learning for diverse students with over a decade of teaching experience. As a Consciousness-Based Educator, integrating real-world business applications with experiential learning, ethical awareness, and financial literacy. Her teaching blends human judgment with emerging technologies, equipping students to make responsible, data-driven decisions in AI-augmented business environments. Currently pursuing a PhD in Management. Holds an MBA in Sustainable Business and a BSc (Hons) in Applied Accounting, along with professional certifications in Accounting and Financial Modeling & Data Analysis.

Natasha BerkowitzInstructor of Transformational Leadership & Coaching

Natasha Berkowitz is an educator, career coach, and leadership development professional with more than 15 years of experience in higher education, adult learning, and personal transformation. She currently serves as an Instructor and Career Coach at Maharishi International University, where she helps international IT professionals develop the skills, confidence, and professional presence needed to succeed in the US job market.

Natasha’s background includes teaching, curriculum design, public speaking, leadership development, and one-on-one coaching. Prior to joining MIU, she co-directed one of the most active Transcendental Meditation centers in the United States, where she worked with thousands of participants from diverse backgrounds.

Her doctoral research explores how professionals develop greater self-awareness and resilience under pressure.

Lijuan Cai, MBAAdministrative Director of China Programs, Instructor of Management

Lijuan Cai serves as the Administrative Director of China Programs, where she has played a key role in managing the operations of MIU’s PhD and MBA programs in China. She is also an Instructor of Management. She is the co-author of the paper: “Teaching Science and Technology of Consciousness to Management Students in China.”

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Gordon Medlock, PhDAdjunct Professor of Transformational Leadership & Coaching

Dr. Medlock is a Professor in the MIU EdD in Transformational Leadership & Coaching. He is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and Co-Chair of the Research Committee of the Graduate School Alliance for Education and Coaching (GSAEC). He is also a licensed clinical social worker with over 30 years’ experience as a psychotherapist and coach. He has published over a dozen articles in the fields of humanistic and existential psychology, positive psychology, and coaching theory and practice. He also has a doctorate in philosophy from Yale university, where he focused on the study of phenomenology and the nature of consciousness.

John Davidoff, EdDAdjunct Professor of Transformational Leadership and Coaching

Dr. John Davidoff, Adjunct Professor of Transformational Leadership and Coaching at MIU, is the Founder and Chief Mission-Driver of Davidoff Mission-Driven Business Strategy, LLC, a national consultancy that advises Mission-Driven organizations and leaders. John is also Secretary of the Foundation for the Realization of Human Potential Board of Directors. He earned his Ed.D. at the Wright Graduate University for the Realization of Human Potential and his BS in Communications Management at Ithaca College. He resides in Evanston, Illinois, with his wife, Jacki, and their dachshund terrier sisters, Poppy and Alue.

Debra J. Louis, PhDAdjunct Associate Professor of Management

Debra Louis is an Associate Professor of Management.  Her main area of expertise is Organizational Behavior with additional teaching interests in Leadership, Teams, and Cross-Cultural Management.  Prior to joining the faculty at MIU, she was Dean of the College of Business at Trident University International, Assistant Professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University.  Before entering academia, Dr. Louis spent 10 years working in the areas of government and law.  She has also been active as a consultant to a variety of organizations ranging from small community-based organizations to Fortune 100 firms, mostly in the areas of strategic planning and diversity management. She received her PhD in Organizational Behavior from Cornell University. Curriculum Vitae >

Rachel Goodman, PhDAdjunct Associate Professor of Management

Dr. Rachel Goodman has completed seven research studies on trends in government and quality of life; authored several papers on government trends, collective consciousness, and world peace including two in the conference proceedings of the Midwest Political Science Association and the American Political Science Association; edited or co-edited three books of theoretical and research studies including Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace, Consciousness-Based Education and Government, and The Transcendental Meditation Program in Criminal Rehabilitation and Crime Prevention. She also has a chapter in the book, Perspectives on Human Security: National Sovereignty and Humanitarian Intervention. Curriculum Vitae >

Venkata Voruganti, MBA, CPAAdjunct Assistant Professor of Accounting

Venkata Voruganti is a Certified Public Accountant, Chartered Financial Analyst, and a Project Management Professional (PMP). He specializes in ERP implementation, software quality assurance, and project management in information technology. His focus areas are implementing and supporting financial and business intelligence applications, application lifecycle management, learning management systems, and test automation. He has taught banking operations, foreign exchange business, and bank computerization. He currently teaches accountancy, business management, financial information systems, and data analytics. He holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry, an MBA in Finance, and a Bachelor of Laws. Curriculum Vitae >

Ripunjay Bhargava, BA, LLB (Hons), LLM, MA Adjunct Assistant Professor of Law and Government

Ripunjay Bhargava received his LL.M in Environmental Law from the University of Oregon School of Law. He worked on public interest litigation with a senior Supreme Court lawyer of India, MC Mehta, and also taught as an Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Petroleum Energy Studies, India. He teaches Environmental Law, Business Law, Organizational Change Management for Sustainability, Principles of Economics and Mediation & Negotiation, Cross-Cultural Communication, and Communication Skills for Managers. Professor Bhargava is an Assistant Professor of Law and Government and Co-Director of the MA in Leadership & Workplace Conflict Resolution.

Tejasvi Sharma, MBA, PhDAdjunct Assistant Professor of Sustainable and Regenerative Living

Dr. Tejasvi Sharma is dual faculty member in Sustainable and Regenerative Living and Management. Dr. Sharma is passionate about energy technologies, their socioeconomic aspects, deployment, and their impact on society. His research is in alternative energy, specifically in the use of biomass for biochar and electricity production. He has participated in collaborative research initiatives with the University of Brazil, as well as several startup energy companies in California and Iowa. He holds BS, MS, and PhD degrees in Mechanical Engineering, and an MBA. He has also participated in the Climate Change and Energy Policy program at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Curriculum Vitae >

Kenneth Cavanaugh. PhDProfessor Emeritus of Applied Statistics

Ken Cavanaugh received his AB (cum laude) from Yale University, his MPA (Master of Public Affairs) from Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, his MA (Psychological Studies in Education) from Stanford University, and his PhD in Economics from the University of Washington. His main research interest is the impact of the group practice of the TM-Sidhi® program on world peace and societal well-being; Time series analysis. He has published extensively on this topic. Curriculum Vitae >