The Lacy School of Business is excited to introduce a dynamic group of faculty members joining us for the 2025-26 academic year. Each brings a unique mix of industry experience, research expertise, and passion for teaching – further enriching the student experience at LSB. Their contributions will help us continue shaping future business leaders while tackling the challenges and opportunities of an ever-changing world.
“Our new faculty members represent the future of the Lacy School of Business. These are the educators who will form the most meaningful connections with our students – shaping their experiences, their thinking, and ultimately, their futures,” Craig Caldwell, Dean of the Lacy School of Business, said. “One of LSB’s defining strengths is our faculty: research-active scholars who are deeply committed to student engagement. This new group brings extraordinary promise, continuing and even elevating our tradition of thoughtful, student-centered teaching and impactful scholarship.”
Meet our new faculty members:
Kanan Asif, Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Kanan Asif’s own journey has been anything but ordinary – from growing up in a small town in Pakistan and riding a horse cart to school, to working as a tea boy in a jewelry shop, to launching startups and earning a Ph.D. in Entrepreneurship from the University of Massachusetts Lowell. That lived experience shapes how he teaches Real Business Experience (E201) at Butler: not just through lectures, but by helping students discover and develop their own unique strengths. “Learning, unlearning, and relearning every day is what keeps me inspired,” Asif says. Prior to joining academia, he worked across the nonprofit, corporate, and public sectors and began his academic career in Pakistan in 2017. His research explores entrepreneurial decision-making and the individual differences that shape how entrepreneurs think and act. When he’s not sparking entrepreneurial thinking in the classroom, he’s usually spending time with his wife and young daughter, exploring human behavior and personal growth – topics that fuel both his teaching and his life.
Tanya Carson, Lecturer in Accounting
For Tanya Carson, teaching is all about connection. After years of leading large lecture halls with hundreds of students each semester, she knew she wanted something different – smaller classes where she could bring energy to the room and create a safe space for students to collaborate, ask questions, and experience those “light bulb” moments. At Butler, she’s found her dream fit. Carson teaches Principles of Accounting (AC203) and LSB Business Internship (LSB402), where she aims to make accounting approachable, interactive, and even fun. She earned her MBA from Ball State University and holds a graduate certificate in Accounting Analytics from the University of Connecticut. A longtime Carmel resident who has always admired Butler’s campus and community, Carson says joining the Lacy School of Business is everything she hoped it would be: engaged students, the right-sized classrooms, and an atmosphere that feels magical. Outside the classroom, she enjoys hiking, camping, and canoeing, as well as cooking and baking – her specialties include broccoli cheese soup and banana chocolate bread.
Kerri Cissna, Lecturer of Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Kerri Cissna loves learning and dreaming alongside her students, exploring ways to upgrade antiquated systems and use business as a force for good. At Butler, she teaches First Year Business Experience (E101), bringing her passion for innovation, leadership, and purpose-driven work into the classroom. Cissna earned her Ph.D. in Global Leadership and Change from Pepperdine University, completed a postdoctoral program at Wake Forest, and holds a master’s degree from Azusa Pacific and an undergraduate degree from Warner Pacific University. A certified yoga instructor and studio owner, she integrates mindfulness and movement into her life and teaching. When she’s not in the classroom, she enjoys spending time with her journal and a cappuccino, teaching fitness classes, and spending time with her husband Greg caring for their seven cats.
Joe Cripe, Lecturer in Supply Chain Management
Joe Cripe brings his love of developing talent – from his days leading operations at adidas to coaching grade school teams – into the classroom at Butler. He teaches Operations Management (MS350), LSB Business Internship (LSB402), and Strategy Capstone (MG490), helping students connect classroom theory to the real-world goods and services they encounter every day. A proud Indianapolis native, Cripe earned his B.S. at the University of Notre Dame and his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Butler has always held a special place in his life: his father is an alum, he’s been a Butler basketball season ticket holder for 25 years, and he has witnessed firsthand the University’s positive impact on the community. Now transitioning from adjunct to full-time faculty, he’s excited to deepen those connections with students. When he’s not teaching, you’ll likely find him running along the canal towpath or cheering on the Dawgs.
Juan Manuel Gil, Assistant Professor of International Business
For Juan Manuel Gil, international business is more than strategy and markets – it’s about people, purpose, and possibility. Gil has lived and studied across Colombia, England, France, Mexico and Spain, earning his Ph.D. cum laude in Business Administration and Management from Universitat Politècnica de València and a master’s degree in international relations from the University of Bristol. At Butler, he teaches International Business Environment (IB320), inviting students to connect global strategy with deeper meaning and confidence in their ability to shape the world. His own journey includes nearly three years in a unique international community with people from 14 nationalities, an experience that taught him the power of “unity in diversity” and sparked his lifelong belief in the strength of community. Guided by Butler’s purpose-driven mission, Gil begins each class with a moment of breathing and reflection, encouraging students to slow down, think intentionally, and approach business with imagination and heart. When he’s not teaching, he’s exploring entrepreneurial imagination through research and spending time with the global community he’s built around him.
Matthew Lanham, Assistant Professor of Business Technology & Analytics
Matthew Lanham is passionate about helping students become independent thinkers – so much so that his favorite part of teaching is watching them grow to the point where they no longer need him. At Butler, he teaches Business Analytics (MS365), guiding students to master data-driven decision-making and turn complex information into actionable insights. Lanham earned his Ph.D. in Business Information Technology from Virginia Tech, a master’s degree in Biostatistics-Decision Science from the University of Louisville, and his undergraduate degree from Indiana University. Before joining Butler, he spent nine years at Purdue University, leading analytics programs and research. Beyond the classroom, Lanham is a devoted dad to his seven-year-old daughter, Stella – his favorite Little House on the Prairie rewatch partner – and an active member of his church, where he teaches young children on Sundays.
John Shassberger, Lecturer in Finance
After serving 40 years with the Department of the Navy – 21 on active duty as commander and nearly two decades as a civilian leader – John Shassberger knew exactly what he wanted to do next: teach. His journey from the Naval Academy – where he trained and mentored young sailors – to the classroom has been fueled by a passion for getting students to think critically, engage deeply, and launch confidently into life. At Butler, Shassberger is teaching Corporate Finance (FN340) and International Finance (FN451). He earned his Ed.D. in Leadership from Oakland City University, his M.S. in Financial Management from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., and his B.S. in Political Science from the United States Naval Academy. Beyond the classroom, he runs a lively family farm that keeps him, in his words, “young in body and sharp in mind” – with seven kids, twelve dogs, two horses, two cows, two mini donkeys, and six goats to help with that mission.
Shubhra Sharma, Lecturer in Entrepreneurship & Innovation
For Shubhra Sharma, teaching is about presence – 50 minutes of full focus where “aha” moments spark and the classroom feels alive. She teaches First Year Business Experience (E101), drawing on a career that spans continents, from earning a doctorate in socio-cultural anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin to completing an Executive Master’s in Luxury Management and Design Innovation at ESSEC Business School in Paris. Along the way, she’s taught at Vanderbilt, lived in New York, and traveled to seven countries – each experience adding new perspective to how she approaches entrepreneurship. Sharma believes being an entrepreneur is “like drawing the map while you’re walking the terrain,” and she loves helping first-year students begin their journey. When she’s not teaching, you might find her on the golf course (handicap 12), strength training or running outdoors, listening to her favorite 80’s playlists, or working on creative projects like co-writing children’s books with her 10-year-old niece – who proudly claims the title of Creative Director.
