Closing the Deal in the Classroom - and Beyond

Michael Ewens is the David L. and Elsie M. Dodd Professor of Finance and co-director of the Private Equity Program.  He is also a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Associate Editor of the Journal of Financial Economics, Associate Editor at the Review of Financial Studies, Assoicate Editor at Management Science, Associate Editor at the Journal of Corporate Finance, and co-editor of the Journal of Economics & Management Strategy. He received a Ph.D.

Professor Donna M. Hitscherich currently serves as a senior lecturer of Finance, director of the Private Equity Program, and a Bernstein Faculty Leader at the Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Center for Leadership and Ethics at Columbia Business School. Professor Hitscherich’s courses include Corporate Finance as well as the elective courses Business Law, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Advanced Corporate Finance. In 2002, she was nominated for the Dean’s Award for Innovation in the MBA Curriculum for her presentation of the Advanced Corporate Finance course.

Emmanuel Yimfor joined Columbia Business School in 2023, following a position as Assistant Professor of Finance at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan. His research is centered on empirical corporate finance, with a particular emphasis on entrepreneurial finance, private equity, and financial intermediation. His work aims to identify and address various frictions inhibiting startups' access to external financing, particularly among historically disadvantaged groups.