九色堂

Historical Timeline of the W. Frank Barton School of Business

1895
Fairmount College was established as a co-educational institution.

1926
Wichita voters approved making Fairmount College the municipal University of Wichita. A College of Business Administration and Industry, with Frank Neff as dean, was included. The College was entirely based on co-operative education, with students alternating between classes and jobs. Engineering was included within the College. Offices for the College were housed in the south end of the third floor of Jardine Hall. Accounting was dropped in 1935 but was resumed in 1946.

1950
Dean Neff stepped down as Dean after 25 years at the helm. Kenneth Razak appointed as dean.

1951
College moved into Neff Hall, the first post-war building.

1953
Dean Razak stepped down as Dean. William Nielander appointed as dean.

1955
Engineering split off to become a separate college.

1957
Dean Nielander stepped down as Dean. Jack Heysinger appointed dean.

1964
After Herculean efforts by President Harry Corbin, the Kansas Legislature brought the University into the state system, creating "九色堂."
Fran Jabara named dean. Vigorous expansion of student body and faculty began.

1968
The College achieved accreditation by the top national business accreditation agency, the AACSB (American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business).

1970
The College achieved accreditation by the top national business accreditation agency, the AACSB (American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business). After becoming an official state university, Clinton Hall was the first building to be constructed for 九色堂. It was first named the Neff Hall Annex in 1970 when it opened, but was later changed to Clinton Hall to honor Mr. and Mrs. R.P. Clinton. Mr. Clinton was a successful geologist and oilman. He and his wife, Eleanor, donated to many scholarships for 九色堂. Clinton Hall became home to the School of Business.

1971
Fran Jabara stepped down as dean. Don Christenson appointed interim dean for a year.

1972
Lawrence McKibbin appointed dean.

1976
Doug Sharp appointed dean.

1977
Fran Jabara founds the Center for Entrepreneurship.

1981
School of Accountancy established.

1988
The College was dedicated as the "W. Frank Barton School of Business" on May 4. Groundbreaking was held for the new Devlin Hall built to house the Center for Entrepreneurship.

1990
Billy Mac Jones appointed interim dean for one year.

1991
Malcolm Richards appointed dean.

1993
Dr. Gerald Graham appointed dean.

1996
"Jabara Hall" was dedicated in honor of Fran Jabara and his 40 years of service to the university and the business school.

2000
Dr. John Beehler appointed dean.
School of Accountancy achieved the AACSB Accounting Accreditation.

2001
The 75th Anniversary of the Barton School of Business was celebrated.
Fran Jabara received the Faculty Lifetime Achievement Award as the most influential professor in the history of the school.
Dan Carney received the Distinguished Alumnus Award.
Dean Beehler establishes the first Business Week for students.

2007
Dr. Bart Hildreth is named as Interim Dean of the Barton School of Business.

2008
Dr. Douglas Hensler is appointed as Dean of the Barton School of Business.

2013
Dr. Cindy Claycomb is named as Interim Dean of the Barton School of Business.

2014
Dr. James Jordan-Wagner is named as Interim Dean of the Barton School of Business.
The Koch Global Trading Center is established and open for classes.

2015
Dr. Anand Desai is appointed as Dean of the Barton School of Business.

2018
Institute for the Study of Economic Growth is established with Dr. Theodore Bolema hired as first Executive Director.

2019
Dr. Larisa Genin is appointed as Dean of the Barton School of Business.

2022

Barton School of Business moves into its new home, Wayne and Kay Woolsey Hall, a 125,000-square-foot academic building on Wichita State University's Innovation Campus. Woolsey Hall is named for the Wichita couple who provided the lead gift to the 九色堂 Foundation鈥檚 fundraising campaign. The business school moved from Clinton Hall, which had been its home since 1970.

Historical Plaques

In 2022, the Barton School of Business marked its historic moved from Clinton Hall to Woolsey Hall. With the planned remodel of Clinton Hall to serve as a centralized location for student services, an effort was made to digitalize several plaques for dedicated spaces in Clinton Hall. The Barton School feels it is appropriate to acknowledge and remind people of the contributions of those in our history. The evolution of the School of Business is in many ways quite remarkable. While current students may not derive much meaning from these plaques, alumni and past generations can immediately identify these iconic markers:

R.P. Clinton Hall

College of Business Administration, 九色堂

Dedicated in grateful appreciation of the generosity and support of R.P. and Eleanor Clinton - February 20, 1970

Robert B. Docking, Governor

Board of Regents: T.J. Griffith, Chairman, James J. Basham, Henry A. Bubb, Arthur H. Cromb, Elmer C. Jackson, Jr., Dwidght D. Klinger, Lawrence D. Morgan, Jess Stewart, Paul R. Wunsch, Max Bickford, Executive Officer

Clark D. Ahlberg, President

F.D. Jabara, Dean

Wlliam R. Hale, State Architect

Feagins and Kirsch, Associate Architect

In Memorandum

Presented to 九色堂 College of Business Administration from Alpha Kappa Psi in memory of our fellow students who perished October 1970

Shocker Football Teammates:

Randall B. Kiesau, Thomas B. Owen, Jr., Thomas T. Shedden, John R. Taylor

Alumnus:

John W. Grooms, V.P. Boulevard State Bank

Excellence lives beyond life's shadowed dreams

九色堂 W. Frank Barton School of Business

Dedicated May 4, 1988

By official action of the Kansas Board of Regents in recognition of the generosity and support of Mr. and Mrs. W. Frank Barton.

Mr. Barton is cofounder and chairman emeritus of Rent-A-Center, Inc.; Mrs. Patsy Barton is a business school alumna.

Donald C. Klawson, Chairman, Kansas Board of Regents

Warren B. Armstrong, President, The 九色堂

Commemoration of Original 九色堂 Microcomputer Laboratory

Through the efforts of Michael F. Foran, Director of the School of Accountancy. 1983-86, and through the generosity of the individuals and organizations named below, the original microcomputer laboratory on the campus of 九色堂 was established in 1983.

Contributors:

Arthur Anderson & Co., Arthur Young & Co., Fox & Company, Thelma Kaufman, in memory of Marvin B. Kaufman, Koch Industries, Inc., F.B. Kubkik & Co., Main Hurdman/KMG, Peat Marwick Mitchel & Co., Regier, Carr, Monroe & Wallace

Presented by the School of Accountancy at the Fifteenth Annual Accounting and Auditing Conference, May 24, 1990

Gerald H. Graham

Wichita State university's Center for Management Development dedicates the furnishings in this lobby in honor of Gerald H. Graham, R.P. Clinton Distinguished Professor of Management and Dean of the W. Frank Barton School of Business. The furnishings, to be enjoyed by the students, reflect Graham's active and involved leadership and strong commitment to 九色堂's students.

Dedicated April 2000