• Meet the new dean of Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business

    Dr. Sandeep Mazumder with a student in the business school lobby

    The road that led Dr. Sandeep Mazumder to Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business began in London, featured stops at some of the world’s most prestigious universities, introduced him to his wife and the Christian faith, and prepared him as a rising star in higher education.

    Mazumder was named as the William E. Crenshaw Endowed Dean of Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business this past spring after a nationwide search to fill the shoes of longtime dean Terry Maness, who retired this summer after 24 years of leadership that saw Hankamer reach new heights and earn increasing national recognition. As the business school enters a new season of leadership, get to know the new dean who brings a distinct array of experiences to the role:

    International Upbringing: Mazumder was born and raised in London, in a diverse environment. His parents immigrated from India to England to serve as doctors, and Mazumder often spent summers with extended family in India.

    Economics Expertise: Macroeconomics, monetary economics, international economics — Mazumder’s expertise and scholarly interest falls under the wide umbrella of economics. His interest in the subject began when his older brother attended the London School of Economics and he “fell in love” with the topic.

    “I never really set out to want to be a professor,” he explains. “Rather it was, I wanted to do economics. I just wanted to do economics as much as possible and study it and research it. Teaching it became a natural outflow of that love for economics.”

    From Cambridge to Johns Hopkins: Mazumder has studied at some of the world’s most prestigious institutions, beginning with earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Cambridge. After moving to the U.S. to pursue his doctorate, he earned a second master’s and then his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

    Life-Altering Relationships: Mazumder was raised Hindu, but when he met his future wife, Gretchen — a Christian — he found himself drawn to a personal God who could be known and who wanted to know him. It wasn’t long before Mazumder accepted Christ, getting baptized by Gretchen’s pastor (who also later performed their marriage ceremony). That faith now dictates his approach to life and his work.

    “As a Christian, it’s important to me that we don’t have a secular-sacred divide,” he says. “So, if you’re a professor or mechanic or plumber, doctor or nurse, whatever it is you do, you do as a Christian. You’re doing it for God’s glory and it’s a part of his creation. That’s always been important to me and I love that it’s important to Baylor and it’s part of the university’s mission… At Hankamer, that’s an integral part of what we’re doing.”

    Wake Forest Growth: Twelve years at Wake Forest University prepared Mazumder for leadership at Baylor. He began there as an assistant professor of economics in 2009, and was promoted to associate professor in 2015. From there, he was named associate chair and then chair of economics in 2017, serving as Wake Forest’s “chair of chairs” for a term, where he provided leadership for all department chairs on campus.

    As he begins a new chapter as Hankamer’s dean, Mazumder looks forward to leading at a Christian research university combining excellent teaching and scholarship.

    “Reading about Baylor’s mission, the Christian faith and the fantastic work that has happened here got me very excited about this opportunity,” he says. “It’s a really good time for us to sit down and start to dream. Where do we want to see the Hankamer School of Business going? … How do we add to the amazing work that is already going on here, and how do we think about further plans to promote that?”

    Sic ’em, Dean Mazumder!