Dr. Chip Hunter

Larry W. (Chip) Hunter was appointed dean of Washington State University’s Carson College of Business in 2015. He leads the college in its mission to create insight and opportunity through the study of business and the power of our community, for Washington state and the world.

Hunter is committed to building educational opportunities that create upward mobility for students and strengthen the Pacific Northwest’s economy. He’s passionate about the role research universities play in student development, from bringing high-achieving faculty and cutting-edge research into the classroom to opportunities for students to interact with graduate students and gain exposure to research methods. Hunter believes that such a premier education ought to be available to all students willing and able to do the work expected. Under his leadership, the Carson College aims to be “the model school of business for tomorrow’s land-grant university.”

An award-winning scholar specializing in human resources and industrial relations, Hunter is the immediate past president of the Industry Studies Association, a community of scholars committed to rigorous research. In his work, Hunter seeks to develop knowledge through direct fieldwork and a deep understanding of the dynamics of specific industries. His research spans industrial settings, with a focus on managing workplaces and human resources to promote organizational goals and positive outcomes for workers.

Prior to his WSU appointment, Hunter was the senior associate dean of the Wisconsin School of Business at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served on the Wisconsin faculty for 13 years, winning multiple teaching awards and was named the Pyle-Bascom Professorship in Leadership. Before joining the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002, he spent eight years on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania.

Hunter earned his bachelor’s degree at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a Harry S. Truman Scholar. At Penn, he was awarded a Thouron Scholarship to study in the United Kingdom, and he holds a master’s degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University. Hunter earned his doctoral degree in industrial relations and human resource management from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Hunter was raised in the Palouse, graduating from high school in nearby Moscow, Idaho, where he was a U.S. Presidential Scholar.