BYU Marriott School of Business dean Brigitte C. Madrian has announced Rob Christensen as the next director of the Romney Institute of Public Service and Ethics. Christensen took over for the previous director, Lori Wadsworth, on July 1, 2022.
“The Romney Institute has experienced incredible change under Lori’s leadership, including a name change, the start of the Gary Cornia lecture series, a significant increase in the number of full professors in the institute, as well as assuming responsibility for the nonprofit minor, which will be renamed the global and community impact minor this fall,” Madrian says. “I am confident we will see continued progress under Rob’s astute leadership. His commitment to our students, his deep passion for public service, and his highly regarded research in public and nonprofit management will serve him well in his role as director of the institute in the coming years.”
Christensen has been a professor in the MPA program at the Romney Institute of Public Management since 2016 and is currently the George W. Romney Research Fellow. He earned both the BYU Marriott Scholarly Excellence Award and the BYU Marriott Ethics Teaching Award in 2019, and has earned several other accolades during his time at BYU.
Christensen received his undergraduate degree in Russian from Brigham Young University in 1997. From there he continued his education at BYU, earning a dual JD/MPA degree in 2000. In 2001 Christensen attended the University of Indiana to complete his PhD in public administration, which he finished in 2007.
“The Romney Institute is such an amazing place to be,” Christensen says. “The opportunity I’ve had in the past few years to work here with such inspiring people has been life changing. This new responsibility is an added opportunity to contribute to our efforts to help students prepare for a service-based career as they work to help those in need. I look forward to continuing the momentum that has been created by those who have gone before as we work to support our students. I am especially indebted to Professor Lori Wadsworth who has done a tremendous job leading the department.”
Christensen will replace Wadsworth, who served as director of the Romney Institute from 2017–2022.
The BYU Marriott School of Business aspires to transform the world through Christlike leadership by developing leaders of faith, intellect, and character. Named for benefactors J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott, the school is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. BYU Marriott has four graduate and nine undergraduate programs with an enrollment of approximately 3,300 students.
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Writer: Zelle Harris