Dr. Shirland retired from the School of Business in July 2011. He came to UVM in 1976 after four years at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. His main teaching areas are Production and Operations Management, Operations Research, and Quality Assurance. Dr. Shirland earned his Ph.D. from Oregon State University in 1972. Before joining UVM he taught for four years at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He also spent four years with the Eastman Kodak company as a development engineer and contract analyst.

Dr. Shirland's textbook, Statistical Quality Control: With Microcomputer Applications, was published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in 1993. His publications have appeared in numerous academic journals including Decision Sciences, Industrial Engineering, MIS Quarterly, Engineering Management Journal, Interfaces, OMEGA, Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Applied Business Research, and Journal of Systems Management.