Dr. Dana Forgione Joins A&M-Corpus Christi as Neal-Coonrod Endowed Chair in Accounting

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Dr. Dana Forgione has been selected as the inaugural recipient of the newly created Jessie Frances Neal Foundation and Clifton W. Coonrod Endowed Chair in Accounting in the College of Business at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.

The endowed chair was made possible through the generosity and support of scholarship donor Jessie Frances Neal, who has made a difference in the lives of dozens of students in the College of Business.

 “As a businesswoman, I find it an excellent investment,” Neal said. “I see exactly where my money is going – every time I see their faces and review their grade point averages, it confirms that there is nothing else I’d rather support.”

After assisting students with scholarships for many years, Neal felt the next step to help students succeed was establishment of the Neal-Coonrod Endowed Chair in Accounting.

“When I was told that creating the chair would benefit the Master of Accountancy degree in the College of Business, I thought this would help my students go even further,” Neal said. “Now they will have more opportunity to achieve a master’s degree.” 

Forgione said the support will help advance development of graduate programs in accounting as well as the MBA with a concentration in Healthcare Administration at the Island University.

“I look forward to working with Islander graduate and undergraduate students, especially when it comes to developing excellence in accounting,” he said. “I will also help mentor junior faculty and provide leadership in the profession.”

Forgione brings an extensive background to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He was the inaugural Janey S. Briscoe Endowed Chair in the Business of Health at the University of Texas at San Antonio, which he held for its first decade. He directed the MBA in the UTSA Business of Health program, and is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Medicine, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Department of Pediatrics, and the School of Public Health, as well as a faculty member in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences’ Translational Science Ph.D. program, all at UT Health in San Antonio.

Forgione is a consultant to health care organizations and has analyzed the financial and operating performance of more than 5,500 hospitals throughout the United States.

He also served as adviser to the MBA in Healthcare Management program at the University of Baltimore, and held a joint appointment in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Maryland, where he taught in the Doctor of Pharmacy program.

“The addition of Dr. Forgione to the College of Business faculty as the Neal-Coonrod Chair of Accounting will provide a meaningful assist as we strive to keep the TAMU-CC accounting program among the strongest in Texas,” said College of Business Dean John Gamble. “Dr. Forgione’s experience and expertise will help add depth and breadth to the undergraduate and graduate accounting programs. This continuous improvement in the accounting program benefits our students as they build careers in managerial and public accounting.”