The online UW Master of Science in Sustainable Management faculty is one of its greatest strengths. You won’t find another sustainability program—online or otherwise—that brings such diverse expertise together in one place. That’s because the program is a partnership of UW Extended Campus and UW-Green Bay, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Parkside, UW-Stout, and UW-Superior. All courses in this online program are developed and taught by University of Wisconsin faculty—the same faculty who teach our on-campus courses.
UW Sustainable Management faculty have expertise in a wide range of fields, including: Accounting, Botany, Business, Chemistry, Computer Engineering, Economics, Environmental Dynamics, Environmental Studies, Geography, Law, Logistics, Psychology, Range Science, Resource Management, Sociology, and Urban Planning.
Meet the Faculty
Vallari Chandna | UW-Green Bay
Vallari Chandna is an Assistant Professor of Management for the Austin E. Cofrin School of Business at UW-Green Bay. She earned her PhD in Organizational Theory from University of North Texas (2016), her MBA in Organizational Behavior and Human Resources from University of North Texas (2011) and a degree in law (BA.LL.B-Honors) from RSTMN University, India (2007). She also has experience working in the retail and media industries. Dr. Chandna has taught courses in organizational behavior, strategic management, entrepreneurship, business policy (capstone), leadership, and human resources. Her current research interests are in organizational theory and entrepreneurship including virtual entrepreneurship, new organizational forms (temporary organizations), degrowth, sustainability, individual and organizational issues in start-ups, and inter-organizational relationships. Dr. Chandna has presented her research at many regional, national, and international conferences including the Academy of Management Annual Conference, Southern Management Association Conference, Southwest Academy of Management Conference, the European Group for organizational studies (EGOS) Colloquium, Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference (BCERC), and the Sustainability, Ethics and Entrepreneurship (SEE) Conference amongst others. She is currently a board member for Southwest Academy of Management serving as a representative-at-large. Dr. Chandna also serves on several committees and is a faculty associate of the Environmental Management and Business Institute (EMBI).
Steven Dunn | UW-Oshkosh
Dr. Steven Dunn, Professor of Sustainability and Director of the Center for Sustainable Enterprise, joined the UW-Oshkosh faculty in 1999. He has a B.S. in Zoology from California State University, Long Beach, an M.B.A. from Boise State University, and a Ph.D. in Business from The Pennsylvania State University. In addition to teaching, he is a consultant in the areas of strategic sustainability and entrepreneurship. Dr. Dunn teaches the Built Environment and the Capstone courses.
Michael Holly | UW-Green Bay
Dr. Michael Holly is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering Technology for the Richard J. Resch School of Engineering at UW-Green Bay. He has an B.S. in Biosystems Engineering from Michigan State University and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Biological Systems Engineering from UW-Madison. Dr. Holly’s teaching interests include water and wastewater treatment and solid waste management including resource recovery, hazardous waste disposal, and environmental remediation. His research interests include agricultural waste management, stormwater management, engineered wetlands, greenhouse gas and ammonia mitigation from agriculture, aquaponics modeling, and treatment of wastewater containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
John Katers | UW-Green Bay
Dr. John Katers, Professor and Chair of Natural and Applied Sciences and the Director of the Environmental Management and Business Institute (EMBI), has been a member of the UW-Green Bay faculty since 1999. He is also the current Frederick E. Baer Professor in Business. He has a B.S. in Environmental Science and Business Administration and an M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from UW-Green Bay, and a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Marquette University. Dr. Katers teaches courses in Pollution Control, Pollution Prevention, Resource Management Strategies, and Waste Management/Resource Recovery. He has received numerous awards, including the UWGB Founders Award for Community Outreach and the UWGB Student Nominated Teaching Award. In 2013, Katers was awarded a Fulbright Specialist position that allowed him to travel to Santiago, Chile to work collaboratively on sustainability issues with faculty at the Universidad del Desarrollo, where he also led a travel course for Sustainable Management master’s students in August of 2015.
Jullie L. Kinzelman | UW-Parkside
Dr. Julie Kinzelman, Associate Lecturer in the Center for Environmental Studies, joined the UW-Parkside faculty in 2007. She has a B.S. in Medical Technology from UW-Parkside, a Supervisory Management certificate, an M.S. in Clinical Laboratory Sciences from UW-Milwaukee, and a Ph.D. in Microbiology/Public Health from the University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom. She is an Affiliate Scientist at the UW-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences and a Visiting Senior Lecturer at the University of Surrey, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences. In addition to teaching, she is the director of the City of Racine Health Department Laboratory (Racine, WI) where she works with local, state, and federal agencies to find applied science solutions to improve water quality, protect public health, and restore utility. Dr. Kinzelman teaches Sustainable Water Management.
Michael Peter Lizotte | UW-Oshkosh
Dr. Michael Lizotte joined the UW-Oshkosh faculty in 1994 and has served the university as an Associate Professor of Ecology, Director of the Aquatic Research Laboratory, and Director of Sustainability. He has a B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, an M.S. in Botany from Virginia Tech, and a Ph.D. in Marine Biology from the University of Southern California. He is currently the Sustainability Officer for the University of North Carolina Charlotte and a principal investigator for the Integrated Network for Social Sustainability. Dr. Lizotte teaches courses in cultural and historical foundations of sustainability.
Sakib Mahmud | UW-Superior
Dr. Sakib Mahmud is an Associate Professor in Sustainable Management and Economics at UW-Superior. Dr. Mahmud received his doctoral degree in Economics from the University of Wyoming and M.A. in Economics from the University of British Columbia (UBC) of Canada. Dr. Mahmud’s research focuses on applied microeconomics with applications on issues related to climate change adaptation, environmental and resource economics, behavioral economics and policy. He was the 2014-2015 Wisconsin Teaching Fellow under the University of Wisconsin System. Besides teaching and research, Dr. Mahmud is currently serving as an Academic Director for the B.S. in Sustainable Management program at UW-Superior. He is also serving as one of the Steering Committee Members for the National Bank of Commerce-sponsored Regional Economic Indicators Forum (REIF) project. The project involves mentoring of undergraduate student researchers to perform long-term study of economic and business indicators covering 15 counties in Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin. Dr. Mahmud teaches Economics of Sustainability, International Development and Sustainability, and Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability courses.
Heather McCombs | UW-Oshkosh
Heather McCombs joined UW Oshkosh as a Lecturer in the Sustainable Management program in 2015. She has an M.S. in Organizational Leadership and Quality from Marian University, a B.F.A. from California Institute of the Arts, and an Associate in Interior Design from Fox Valley Technical College. McCombs became a LEED AP in 2008 and taught exam prep for the LEED Green Associate exam at Fox Valley Technical College. In 2011 – 2013 as Executive Director of the USGBC WI chapter, McCombs brought hundreds of green building and design educational opportunities to the state. McCombs’ textbook, LEED Green Associate Exam Prep Guide, v.4, American Technical Publishers, 2014, is used worldwide as a tool to introduce the core concepts of sustainability to students and professionals in business, hospitality, agriculture, marketing, engineering, law, and other fields. In addition to teaching and writing McCombs is the Interior Designer for Lawrence University in Appleton where she works to incorporate sustainable design principals into every project. Professor McCombs teaches The Built Environment course.
Ibrahim (Brian) Oenga | UW-Stout
Ibrahim K. Oenga, Assistant Professor of Business, joined the UW-Stout faculty in 2009. He has a B.Com and L.L.B from Karnatak University in India, a Diploma of Associate from the Insurance Institute of India, a Diploma of Law from the Kenya School of Law, and an LL.M from Hamline University School of Law. In addition to his work at UW-Stout, he is also a visiting professor at the Cooperative University College of Kenya and an adjunct faculty member at UW-River Falls. Mr. Oenga will teach courses in policy, law and ethics of sustainability, business law, real estate law, legal aspects of construction, and real estate principles.
John D. Skalbeck | UW-Parkside
Dr. John Skalbeck is a Professor of Geosciences at UW-Parkside. He has a B.S. in Geology from Gustavus Adolphus College, an M.S. in Geology from Western Washington University, and a Ph.D. in Hydrogeology from the University of Nevada. He serves as an academic director for the UW Master of Science in Sustainable Management and was a founding academic director for the UW Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Management. Prior to joining UW-Parkside in 2001, Dr. Skalbeck spent over ten years as a groundwater consultant specializing in soil and groundwater contamination and remediation. Dr. Skalbeck teaches courses in physical geology, sedimentology and stratigraphy, hydrogeology, geophysics, and Great Lakes water resources. His research areas include modeling gravity and magnetic data for hydrogeologic assessment, water quality monitoring, and wetland characterization. Dr. Skalbeck’s current research involves a ten-year hydrologic investigation of the Albion Basin in Alta Utah for the Friends of Alta; a collaboration with colleagues from Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences in Wolfenbüttel Germany on the development of a mobile phone application for modeling the growth of algae in small lakes; and modeling of basement structure in Dodge County, Wis. using gravity and magnetic data for the Wisconsin Geologic and Natural History Survey.
Elizabeth Wheat | UW-Green Bay
Elizabeth E. Wheat is an Assistant Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs (Political Science) at UW-Green Bay. She has a B.A. from Alma College, an M.P.A. from Indiana University, and a Ph.D. from Western Michigan University. Dr. Wheat’s teaching interests include environmental law and policy; global environmental politics; natural resources; constitutional law; and global politics. Her research interests include environmental law at the U.S. Court of Appeals; wildlife smuggling; environmental justice; environmental policy, particularly endangered species and water policy; and policy analysis.
Have questions about UW Sustainable Management online programs? Talk to an enrollment adviser.
