Office of the Dean University of West Georgia

Passing of Deborah J. Webb

Dear Colleagues,

It is with sadness that I share the news that Deborah J. Webb, Associate Professor at the University of West Georgia, died on May 16, 2015, following a brave 11-year battle with cancer. Born December 11, 1958, she graduated Loganville High School in 1976. She subsequently earned a B.B.A. from Mercer University and a M.B.A. and Ph.D. from Georgia State University.

After a 12-year career in production and marketing research at BellSouth Corporation, she entered academia, earning her Ph.D. from Georgia State University. She taught at Oglethorpe University before joining the faculty of the University of West Georgia. As a college professor, she channeled her passion for improving society into her research in marketing’s effect on and response to societal concerns like the environment and charitable giving. Her nine refereed journal articles and 20 conference presentations have been cited over 3,500 times by fellow scholars, acknowledging her important and lasting contribution.

A member of Mensa, the Sierra Club, the American Humane Society, the American Marketing Association and its Marketing and Society Special Interest Group, Professor Webb’s many honors include Mercer University’s Management Honor Graduate, the BellSouth Ace Award, an American Marketing Association Doctoral Consortium Fellowship, the Marketing and Public Policy Conference’s Best Competitive Paper Award, and several other awards recognizing her dedication to teaching, research, and service.

She is survived by her husband, James H. Murphy of Grayson, GA; parents Gloria J. and Arthur D. Morris of Loganville, GA; and sisters Angie Webb Preisendanz and Christy Morris O’Hara, both of Grayson, GA. She is preceded in death by her father, Harold Webb of Lawrenceville, GA.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Carroll County Humane Society or the American Cancer Society. Arrangements by Tim Stewart Funeral Home, 670 Tom Brewer Road, Loganville, GA 30052. 770-466-1544. Please sign the online guest registry at www.stewartfh.com.

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