PHILADELPHIA (September 2, 2009) – With his blonde hair tied back into a low ponytail, Neal H. Hooker, Ph.D., looks like he spent the summer surfing waves rather than researching international food policy and childhood obesity. It just goes to show you – looks can be deceiving.
The accomplished academic is Saint Joseph’s University’s new C.J. McNutt Chair. Hooker’s work with government agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the UK’s Food Standards Agency, among others, has harvested research ranging from organic marketing strategies to food safety claims and recalls.
Hooker, who comes to Saint Joseph’s directly from the Ohio State University where he was an associate professor of agricultural, environmental and development economics, is looking forward to new opportunities within the Erivan K. Haub School of Business’ Department of Food Marketing.
“To be part of a department that focuses specifically on food marketing is a refreshing change,” says Hooker. “I’m enthusiastic about the opportunity to interact more with industry and also delve more deeply into particular food marketing topics and issues.”
As the C.J. McNutt Chair, Hooker will teach an undergraduate food marketing communication course in addition to an EMBA course on fair trade. He also plans to collaborate with other food marketing faculty on an array of research projects.
“As a proficient researcher, Neal offers a dynamic perspective for students,” hails Joseph DiAngelo Jr., Ed.D. ’70, dean of the Haub School. “His agency and academic experience will give our students access to resources they may not have otherwise known.”
The C.J. McNutt Chair was established in 1984 by the Campbell Soup Company in honor of former Campbell Soup President James McNutt’s retirement. The endowment supports a position that recognizes a career distinguished by individual excellence and high achievement in the food industry. The Chair activities include teaching and lectures in various degree and non-degree programs, research, and business networking.
Background: Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851, Saint Joseph's University advances the professional and personal ambitions of men and women by providing a demanding, yet supportive, educational experience. One of only 129 schools with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter and AACSB business school accreditation, Saint Joseph's is home to 4,500 full-time undergraduates and 3,200 graduate, part-time and doctoral students. Steeped in the 450-year Jesuit tradition of scholarship and service, Saint Joseph's was named to the 2008 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for General Community Service. The University strives to be recognized as the preeminent Catholic comprehensive university in the Northeast.
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Contact: Carolyn Steigleman, Associate Director, Office of University Communications, 610-660-1355, csteigle@sju.edu
