Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance

A Welcome From the Dean

It is my honor and privilege to serve as dean of the Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance. Our academic programs embrace a philosophy built on foundational education, experiential learning, and a commitment to the professional development of our students. The School emphasizes student success, thought leadership, and community engagement.

Our finance curriculum provides a broad-based, analytical program for students anticipating a career in the management of both large and small organizations. USF is a member of the CFA Institute’s University Affiliation Program. We offer a Bachelor of Science in Personal Financial Planning with a focus on CFP certification. We oversee two Student Management Investment Funds valued at about $1.2 million and a Bloomberg lab (Sarasota-Manatee campus) that allows our students to receive hands-on experience in investment management. We are investing in and developing the next generation of financial leaders.

Our faculty engage in cutting-edge research in finance and related areas with a significant impact on extant literature and the profession. They consistently publish in the top journals in the field such as the Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Financial Studies, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Management Science, Journal of Business, Journal of Accounting Research, and others. Our faculty’s impactful research gets cited in prestigious media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, NY Times, USA Today, Reuters, and many others.

As dean of the Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance and Campus Dean for the Muma College of Business St. Petersburg campus, we will play a key role in the region’s economic development through our academic programs and community outreach. We are home to the Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Center, Bishop Center for Ethical Leadership, USF Customer Experience Lab St. Petersburg, Institute for Data Analytics and Visualization, and the newly launched Fintech Center. We collaborate with our community partners to deliver the “St. Pete Pitch Night” competition.

I invite you to engage with the Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance as we build a lasting legacy in serving the needs of our students, businesses, and the community with the excellence found at the University of South Florida. 

Gary A. Patterson, PhD
Dean Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance and
Campus Dean Muma College of Business, St Petersburg 
Tiedemann-Cotton Professor of Finance