Dr. Beecher received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, a Master of Science in Retail and Consumer Sciences, and a Ph.D. in Human Ecology, all from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She began her Carson-Newman College career in fall 2004.

Before starting at Carson-Newman College, Dr. Beecher worked in the retail industry at Proffitt’s corporate office as well as in the commercial real estate field at Wood Properties, Inc. She previously taught courses at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and Tennessee Wesleyan College. She is a member of Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church in Knoxville. In her free time, she teaches aerobics and volunteers at several non-profit organizations in the Knoxville area.

Dr. Herring joined Carson-Newman College in July 2010. He previously was on the accounting faculty at Mississippi State University (MSU) for the past 23 ½ years where he held the Bill Simmons Teaching Fellow. During his tenure at MSU, Dr. Herring also served as the Interim Director of the Adkerson School of Accountancy in 2000 and again from 2006-2008.

Dr. Herring received his Bachelor of Professional Accountancy in 1980 and Master of Professional Accountancy in 1981, both from MSU. After graduation, he began his career with Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. (now KPMG) in Nashville, TN. In 1984, he entered the PhD program at University of Alabama and received his doctorate in 1988.

Dr. Herring has been very active in professional organizations. He served in various positions for the Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants (MSCPA); Awards, Education, and Scholarship Committee member for 23 years, Treasurer in 2001-2002, and Vice President/President/Past President from 2003-2006. From 2007-2010, Dr. Herring served a three-year term as an at-large board member. In 2001, he was recognized as the MSCPA Outstanding Educator for the state of Mississippi. Dr. Herring also served as a committee member, treasurer, vice president, and president of the local chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants.

Alex Hutchins, Adjunct in the School of Business for Carson Newman, is a North Carolinian (Tarheel) by birth, and received his MBA from the Babcock Graduate School of Management at Wake Forest University in 1981. His 40+ year career has seen him in a variety of Management positions from Executive Director of a Local Arts Council to Corporate Director of Quality Improvement to President of Quest Training, Inc., an Organizational Development Company that he founded in 1990, when he moved from North Carolina to Tennessee, to create the second Center for Quality and Productivity Training in TN at Walters State Community College in Morristown. Alex has been involved with Adult Higher Education since 1986 when he began custom designing training programs for business and industry at Piedmont Community College in Rxboro, NC. With over 13,000 hours of Project Management experience under his belt, Alex has written 16 Project Management curriculums (onsite and online) currently being used by proprietary schools and is currently a featured writer on Examiner.com/Knoxville for Adult Education.

Dr. Knight received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Economics from the University of Tennessee and her Master’s and Ph.D. in Economics from North Carolina State University. Dr. Knight began her Carson-Newman teaching career in fall 2000.

Dr. Knight came to Carson-Newman from Triangle Economic Research where she worked as a Senior Economist. She previously taught at North Carolina State University.

Dr. Laughlin joined the Carson-Newman faculty in fall 2001. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee and her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she graduated summa cum laude and received the Michie Company Outstanding Graduate Award. Upon graduation from law school, Dr. Laughlin served as a federal court law clerk in the Eastern District of Tennessee for Judge Thomas G. Hull. Dr. Laughlin also served as counsel for Permanent General Insurance Company and practiced law with the firm of Butler, Vines and Babb, PLLC, prior to coming to Carson-Newman.

In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Dr. Laughlin has published articles on legal issues in business, and she has received training in the area of mediation. She recently received an LL.M. in insurance law with honors through the University of Connecticut where she was awarded the school's 2011 LL.M. Prize for exemplifying the law school's commitment to distinguished scholarship in the field of insurance law and for dedication to serving the community. She has also recently had the following articles accepted for publication: "The Filed Rate Doctrine and the Insurance Arena" to be published in spring 2012 by the Connecticut Insurance Law Journal; "State Laws Restricting the Operation of Risk Retention Groups - Necessary Protection or Illegal Regulation?" to be published in the 2012 edition of the Drake Law Review; and, "The Precautionary Principle as Applied to the Public Release of Information Regarding Convicted Sexual Offenders for the Purpose of Child Protection" to be published in 2012 by the Whittier Journal of Child and Family Advocacy.

In addition to her law degrees, Dr. Laughlin is a listed mediator in both the general civil and family areas. She was also awarded a scholarship to the Salzburg Global Seminar on International and Islamic law held in Austria.