Jennifer Bott

Dr. Jennifer P. Bott holds academic rank as professor of management and has earned a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification.

She served as provost and vice president for academic affairs from 2017 to 2022. As the chief academic officer and chief administrative officer following the president of Western Michigan University, her responsibilities included the oversight of all academic policies and activities throughout the university, as well as the development and execution of long-range planning for—and coordination of administrative support functions of—the University’s academic enterprise. She served as a member of the President’s Cabinet and collaborated with senior executive and vice-presidential colleagues to propel the University forward in pursuit of its mission through innovation and strategic risk.

Prior to coming to Western Michigan University, she served as dean of the Miller College of Business at Ball State University. During her tenure as dean, Bott raised over $15 million in gifts and donations to expand the scope of the college’s many programs and initiatives. Before serving as dean of the Miller College, Bott was associate provost at Ball State University leading the online and distance education programs. Duties included oversight and administration of over 60 degrees and nearly 10,000 students. Bott garnered a $1.2 million investment to build the Integrated Learning Institute (iLearn), a faculty development unit housing instructional designers, instructional technologists and custom asset developers. She also created iLearn Research, a fully self-supporting research institute generating primary research in best practices for online and blended education. The online programs grew under Bott’s leadership, increasing institutional tuition revenue by $30 million.

Bott attained her master’s and doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology from the University of Akron in 2004. Her research interests center around methodology and statistics to applied business problems as well as pedagogical improvement across modality and discipline. 

A well published researcher, Bott has more than 25 published articles in some of the best journals in her field, including Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Applied Social Psychology, Small Group Research, and the Journal of Business and Psychology. Her teaching evaluations consistently ranked in the top five percent of her college. She was recognized nationally for innovation in teaching and as a frequent recipient of student selected teaching awards. Bott has received national recognition, including being named a Woman of Influence in 2017 by the Indianapolis Business Journal, receiving the Silver Award, Principal, Major and Special Giving Programs from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, and the Innovation in Business Education Award from the Midcontinent AACSB Deans Association. In addition, her work as associate provost for learning initiatives led to Ball State being recognized nationally with Institution-Wide Excellence in Online Education by the Online Learning Consortium and for Strategic Innovations in Online Education by the University Professional and Continuing Education Association. Bott achieved numerous top 20 rankings in U.S. News and World Report’s online program rankings.