The newest graduates to earn their doctoral degrees from the DeVos Graduate School of Management at Northwood University include a resident from Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a native Bahamian residing in Canada.
“I recommend this program to anyone who is looking to become a leader in their industry,” stated Valarie Taffs-Cook, who was born in Mount Pleasant, which is about 27 miles west of Northwood University’s campus in Midland, Michigan. Since 2004, she has resided in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“This program also allows you to be an expert in the field you are passionate about,” continued Taffs-Cook.
Taffs-Cook’s dissertation was titled, Examining the Effects of Life-Changing Events on National Football League Quarterbacks in Relation to the Quarterback on Field Performance – A Quantitative Study.
Her dissertation explored whether life-changing events are related to the performance of starting quarterbacks in the National Football League, as measured by their quarterback rating.
Taffs-Cook successfully defended her dissertation on May 8; her presentation can be viewed here.
Dr. Lorne (Todd) Thomas, associate academic dean and professor at the DeVos Graduate School of Management at Northwood University, served as her dissertation chair.
“Valarie knew she wanted to do NFL quarterback research related to the impact of personal crises from the first major assignment in her first DBA class,” Thomas explained. “The problem was that the question she had framed at the time did not have the specificity nor scope that one would want in a dissertation.”
Rather than taking the easy road and switching to a more universally-relevant topic, Taffs-Cook impressed faculty by evolving the topic she felt passionate about into one that ultimately was complex, scholarly and pragmatic.
“She was a great example of choosing to stick with her passion while at the same time being very open to the feedback and concerns she received along the way,” Thomas said. “She never ‘blamed’ anybody for pushing back on her topic but took all of the feedback constructively and as a personal challenge to make it work. As a result, she is the expert in the field on life event impacts on athletic performance as well as on the measurement techniques and approaches to assessing similar types of questions.”
Taffs-Cook was among the first DBA cohort at Northwood University’s Richard DeVos Graduate School of Management, which announced the addition of a DBA degree program in April 2020. Taffs-Cook’s cohort of 15 students started their doctoral journey in August of that year.
“I was shopping for a doctorate program since I graduated with my MBA from Northwood in 2017,” she said. “I had asked during my MBA if they would add a DBA, but at the time, the estimate was five years out. I did not act on the pursuit of a terminal degree program in those three years due to some exciting other developments. Then, when DeVos announced a DBA program in 2020, Northwood reached out to me, and I was excited to apply.”
Taffs-Cook said she has evolved and grown in many ways since she began the DBA program.
“I believe I have become a deeper thinker who evaluates situations differently,” she elaborated. “How I analyze issues, situations, and subjects is more profound. I am also more sure of myself and believe I can do anything.”
She said Northwood’s DBA program has given her the tools to be a more supportive leader and professor.
“It also has given me the confidence to believe that I can do anything I set my mind to,” Taffs-Cook added.
Now that she has graduated, Dr. Taffs-Cook does not plan to rest on her laurels.
“My goals, now that I have finished my DBA, are to become a full-time professor at a college or university, continue my research, consult with companies that believe they need to level up, and to consult with the NFL,” she said.
Dr. Taffs-Cook was one of two DBA graduates hooded during a May 11 commencement ceremony at Northwood University. The other graduate was Dr. Shemika Miller, a native of Nassau, Bahamas, who currently resides in Toronto, Canada.
Dr. Miller enrolled in the DeVos DBA program in January 2021.
“I am a lifelong learner and was seeking to advance my education via a doctoral-level course with a format that enabled me to continue working full time at the job I love while completing the program,” she explained. “Having completed my master’s and bachelor’s degrees at Northwood University and feeling welcomed as an international student by Northwood’s diverse and inclusive student body, I was curious about what DeVos had to offer regarding a newly-designed terminal degree.”
“When I realized that their program could be completed online in just three years and that, like all Northwood courses, it was rooted in solid foundational philosophies like the importance of free enterprise and individual freedom, returning to Northwood became a no-brainer,” Miller added.
As a high-achieving scholar, Miller began the DBA program in a competitive frame of mind, wanting to outperform her peers and finish the program first. But when she entered the program, she found she wasn’t accustomed to reading academic literature, and she learned that contrary to what she had believed, she needed to further hone her multitasking abilities.
“During the program, I learned to focus on more meaningful goals such as networking with scholars globally, contributing to the existing body of knowledge in an area that I am passionate about, and identifying my unique value as a researcher as opposed to focusing on how my academic performance compares with others,” Miller said. “My ability to multitask has been exponentially increased, and I feel more confident now to handle whatever life throws at me simultaneously while still meeting my goals. Also, despite not reading many academic articles before the program and having difficulty getting the hang of doing so, I voluntarily completed a meta-analysis involving the review of over 400 articles and other academic literature!”
As “top-notch” as she thought she was when she entered the program, Miller noted she soon realized she had a tremendous capacity to do and be more.
“I was stretched, challenged, pushed to personal limits that I was not sure I could come back from… but I made it, and this has taught me that more growth is always possible, but I can do anything I put my mind to,” she said.
Miller recommends that others enroll in the DeVos DBA program because it uniquely caters to people like her who need to work full time but also want to pursue a doctoral degree.
“The virtual format and yearly in-person residency also allow people like me who do not live in the U.S. to complete the program from anywhere in the world,” she added. “The program’s scholar/practitioner model equips practitioners with solid training in theory and research skills to empower them to solve complex problems within their fields. Lastly, the program’s transformative nature— similar to all of Northwood’s programs — is the one thing that positively impacts every area of one’s life forever, including their effectiveness at work, entrepreneurship skills, critical thinking, and business/personal relationships.”
Miller’s dissertation was titled A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Leader-Member Exchange Quality on Employee Turnover Intentions.
“Voluntary employee turnover poses substantial financial and operational challenges for organizations,” Miller explained. “While prior research suggests a link between the quality of leader-member exchange and employee turnover intentions, findings remain inconsistent. I conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the impact of leader-member exchange quality on employee turnover intentions to provide clarity for business leaders seeking to reduce turnover.”
Miller successfully defended her dissertation on April 24; her presentation can be viewed here.
Moving forward, Miller hopes to utilize her DBA moving forward by being a constant contributor to bodies of knowledge in her areas of interest.
“I plan to publish academic literature in traditional and non-traditional formats that not only aid scholars and fills existing literature gaps but are also accessible and easy to understand by the practitioners who need to apply the knowledge in the field,” she explained. “By engaging in teaching, I also intend to serve and empower the next generation of researchers and educational leaders by sharing my unique insights in a thorough and thoughtful manner, which I found valuable during my journey. Lastly, I plan to pursue my entrepreneurial interests, which involve engaging in business ventures that positively impact society and demonstrate the effectiveness of the business principles I have learned at Northwood University.”
“Hence, I am very excited to become an entrepreneur/researcher/teacher who is solving complex problems, demonstrating business excellence, and teaching and empowering the next generation,” Miller concluded.
Dr. Itauma Itauma, assistant professor at the DeVos Graduate School of Management and Miller’s dissertation chair, noted that through her unwavering commitment and proactive approach, Dr. Miller ensured a productive and intellectually stimulating dissertation process.
“She wasn’t afraid to tackle uncharted territory, readily embracing a novel meta-analysis methodology exemplifying her courageous spirit and intellectual curiosity,” Itauma added. “Dr. Miller’s initiative in bridging her knowledge gaps and her openness to new perspectives set her apart as a remarkable doctoral candidate.”
Dr. Miller’s journey is a testament to the power of a curious mindset and the impact of taking proactive initiatives, Itauma continued.
“Her success shows that embracing the unknown and seeking new learning opportunities can lead to extraordinary achievements,” he added. “Future DBA students should take a page from Dr Miller’s book: embrace challenges, take the initiative, and remain open to new ideas. Her proactive and forward-thinking approach is a blueprint for success.”
Dr. Lisa Fairbairn, assistant vice president and dean of the DeVos Graduate School of Management at Northwood University, was equally pleased by the work of both Miller and Taffs-Cook.
“We are proud to add Dr. Miller and Dr. Taffs-Cook to our doctoral alumni,” Fairbairn added.
