Barbara Gross received her Marketing Educators’ Association 2019 Lifetime Contribution earlier this month at the annual conference. Photo provided by Barbara Gross.

California State University, Northridge marketing professor Barbara Gross was honored with the Marketing Educators’ Association (MEA) 2019 Lifetime Contribution Award for her significant and long-term contributions to the organization.

Gross, who has taught at and worked as an administrator at CSUN since 1994, received the Lifetime Contribution Award at the 43rd annual MEA conference earlier this month. The award honors Gross for her support of MEA for more than two decades.

“At MEA, I’ve been around people who really care about marketing education and the scholarship of teaching,” Gross said. “The conferences are a great place for people to present their research and scholarship. Attendees are supportive and offer help and constructive feedback. Colleagues are there to learn and progress from one another.”

​To receive the Lifetime Contribution Award, a member must be nominated and reviewed by a panel of MEA members. The criteria includes length of membership, service to the organization and number of conferences attended.

Gross has served on the board of directors for MEA since 2006. She has served as its president, conference co-chair, director-at-large and board chair over the years. Her contributions have gone beyond leadership and contributed to her goal of creating a positive influence on CSUN’s marketing community through her scholarship. The university’s Department of Marketing aims to provide students with the tools to measure and analyze markets, develop and manage products, create and manage advertising, establish coherent pricing policies, and maintain positive customer relations.

“This award is bestowed upon members of the Marketing Educators’ Association (MEA) who have provided long-term service and support for the organization above and beyond the ordinary,” according to the MEA.

Prior to joining CSUN, Gross held marketing positions with various firms, including a consumer products firm, a financial institution and a consulting firm.

Over the years, Gross has presented 16 research papers as well as more than ten special sessions and panel discussions at MEA conferences about marketing education issues, student and faculty development and curriculum.