Dr. Shalei Simms was named dean of the SUNY Old Westbury School of Business in fall of 2023 after having served as acting dean since summer 2021.
As dean, Simms leads a School of Business that serves more than 700 students studying in undergraduate degree programs centered in Accounting, Business Administration, Finance and Marketing, five-year programs in Accounting and Accounting/Taxation, and graduate programs in Accounting, Forensic Accounting, and Taxation.
As acting dean, she led the School and its faculty through the final submissions and site visit as part of its ultimately successful earning of accreditation from AACSB International, the largest and longest-serving global accrediting body for business schools worldwide.
Prior to her work as dean, Dr. Simms had served the University in a variety of roles, including as director of graduate programs for the School of Business, as a tenured faculty member within the Management, Marketing and Finance Department, as vice-chair of the campus' Faculty Senate and as interim assistant vice president of academic affairs. While serving in Academic Affairs the breadth of her service included oversight responsibilities for educational pipeline initiatives, extramurally funded academic programming and administrative supports for applied learning.
Last year, she was recognized by Long Island Business News with its "Diversity in Business Award" for "actively supporting the growth of diversity and equality in the Long Island community." She currently sits on the board of directors for the Teachers Federal Credit Union, one of the largest credit unions in the country, and is a former member of the Board of Managers of the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA. She presents her “From Idea to Action” and “Level-up” workshop series to potential small business entrepreneurs and provides individual consulting to small business owners.
Simms holds a Ph.D. from Rutgers University and a B.A. from Wesleyan University. She is a member of the Academy of Management, Management Faculty of Color Association and Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Inc.