Johnson receives inaugural Cecil P. McDonough professorship

Finance Professor Don T. Johnson has been named the first McDonough Professor of Business. Johnson, who joined the faculty in 1988 as an assistant professor of finance, teaches several courses involving real estate issues including finance, investments and appraisal. The inaugural Cecil P. McDonough Professorship in Western's College of Business and Technology (CBT) was formally awarded in January 2007.

Tom Erekson & Don JohnsonJohnson has authored and co-authored numerous articles for professional publications; he is the current editor of “Managerial Finance;” and he has conducted surveys and studies regarding real estate-related issues, such as landlords and tenants. Johnson has served as the president of the Academy of Finance (2005-2006), is currently vice president of Midwest Business Administration Association (MBAA) International, and he will be program chair in 2008-2009 and president in 2009-2010.

Johnson won Western's inaugural Provost's Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Activities in 2005 and also received the CBT Award of Excellence in Research and Creative Activities the same year. He serves as adviser of Western's Rho Epsilon Real Estate Fraternity and has served as a member of the University Campus Planning and Use Committee and the North Central Accreditation ­ Re-accreditation Task Force. From 1988-2003, Johnson was program administrator for Western's real estate brokerage certificate and pre-licensing program.

The Cecil P. McDonough Endowed Professorship in Business is designed to recognize the highest level of scholarship and University instruction by providing support for faculty income, research and instruction materials, and professional development. The Cecil P. and Helen McDonough Academic Development Fund provides long-range academic program support and supports innovative instruction and research projects.

“An endowed professorship is one of the highest honors a college can bestow on a member of its faculty,” said CBT Dean Tom Erekson. “An appointment as an endowed professor is intended to empower the individual to make significant additional contributions to his or her field and to the University.”

The McDonough Professorship is awarded for a three-year renewable term to a tenured professor or associate professor from the departments of management, marketing and finance, economics, accountancy and information systems and decision sciences.

To qualify for the McDonough Professorship, faculty members must conduct outstanding research, teaching and/or public service that are widely recognized; exhibit an extraordinary level of productivity and impact in his/her field of study that goes beyond the existing expectations for full professors; have a level of productivity and impact that has been demonstrated for an extended period of time; and serve as a role model for faculty and students.

Photo caption: CBT Dean Tom Erekson, left, presents a plaque to Don T. Johnson, Western's first McDonough Professor of Business.

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Who was Cecil P. McDonough?

Cecil McDonoughIn 1983, Cecil McDonough named WIU as beneficiary of a $1.4 million charitable remainder trust to establish the professorship and an academic development fund.

But he was not a Western graduate.

McDonough shared a connection with former WIU Foundation Board President Jim Garner '50 of Macomb. Garner's mother grew up in the same hometown as McDonough. The two shared stories about Garner's mother and learned that they had a common interest in the insurance business and their friendship grew.

Garner mentioned to McDonough that he and other WIU representatives were seeking private support for the then-College of Business and suggested that such a project might be worthy of McDonough's consideration.

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