Dr. Liang has been a faculty member in CDAE since 1998. Over the past 10 years, she has created innovative, award-winning courses in entrepreneurship taught within CDAE. Her research, teaching, and outreach focus on many perspectives of entrepreneurship and its interactions with people, communities, and organizations. Her learning-in-the-now approach to teaching and dynamic interactions with students push them from the classroom into learning entrepreneurship as an actual entrepreneur.

Courses Taught

CDAE 095: Business Planning for Beginners

CDAE 166: Intro to Community Entrepreneurship

CDAE 267: Strategic Planning: Community Entrepreneurs

CDAE 295: Data Management and Analysis in Excel

Current Projects

Multifunctional Farms in New England and Implications for Rural Development

Honors and Awards

• 2011 Kroepsch-Maurice Excellence in Teaching Award

This University-level Award recognizes faculty, in each of the academic ranks, who have demonstrated excellence in classroom teaching, ability to motivate and challenge students, and the capacity to engage students in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding.

• Outstanding Paper Award, Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (2010, 2009, 2008, 2007)
• Outstanding Research Award, Academy of Entrepreneurship, Allied Academies (2009, 2008, 2007)
• Who's Who in America Honor
• Manchester Who's Who Honor Society
• 2011 Best Teacher of the Year Who Has the Most Positive Impact on Students, presented by the class of 2011, University of Vermont.  (Voted by graduating seniors and student organizations.)
• 2009 Outstanding Research Award, P. Dunn and C. Liang. "Are we on the same pages on financials? Comparing perspectives between entrepreneurship/small business professors and finance professors. Allied Academy.
• 2008 Outstanding Paper Award, C. Liang and P. Dunn. Optimism and Realism- In Business Entrepreneurs and Pre-Business Entrepreneurs, Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship Conference Best Paper Competition.
• 2008 Outstanding Research Award. C. Liang and P. Dunn. Are entrepreneurs optimistic, relistic, both or fuzzy? The relationship between entrepreneurial traits and entrepreneurial learning. Academy of Entrepreneurship, Allied Academies.
• 2007 Outstanding Paper Award. C. Liang and P. Dunn. Myths of optimism and realism in entrepreneurship related to expectations and outcomes. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship Conference Best Paper Competition.
• 2007 Research Award. Allied Academy of Entrepreneurship. C. Liang and P. Dunn. Trigger of new venture creation: a comparison between pre-business and in-business entrepreneurs.
• USASBE Entrepreneurship Case Competition Award, Dollar Enterprise - A small step to success. Presented by the United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 2007.
• National 3-E Learning Award. The Most Creative and Innovative Entrepreneurship Padagogy. Dollar Enterprise. Presented by Delta Epsilon Chi, Inc. and George Washington University with support from the Kauffman Foundation, 2006.
• 2003 Runner Up for Best Paper Award, Federation of Business Disciplines/ Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• 2003 Finalist for Outstanding Teaching Award, US Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• 2001-2004 Coleman Foundation Entrepreneurship Education Scholar
• 2002 Outstanding Paper Award, Federation of Business Disciplines/ Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Recent Research and Teaching Projects

• Project Director and PI - Impacts of Multifunctional Operations on Long Term Sustainability and Prosperity of Small and Medium-Sized Farms and Rural Communities, USDA, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), Fundamental Research Program, $472,669, July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2014.
• PI - Do Networks Improve the Effectiveness of Promotion for Vermont Wine Producers? USDA Competitive HATCH Grant, $45,000, October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2014.
• Co PI - Landfill Assessment for Water Quality and Economics Impacts, USDA Solid Waste Management Program, $157,751, 2010-2012.
• PI - Creating a Partnership between Community Entrepreneurship Major and Inventors of Vermont – Taking Innovation to the Market, University Service-Learning Implementation Grant, 2010-2011, $700. 
• Co PI - Phosphorus and E.Coli Reduction from Silage Leachate Runoff via Innovative Steel Slag, Conservation Initiatives Grant, United States Department of Agriculture, $195,529, 2009-2011. 
• Co PI - Connecting Kids to e-Commerce, funded by the Southern Regional Center for Rural Development, $24,847, 2011-2012.

              Summary:  The purpose of this grant is to provide financial assistance for researchers, extension educators, and other service providers to organize a planning session to (1) identify needs of youth entrepreneurship education; and (2) generate ideas on how e-commerce could be introduced in teaching and developing youth entrepreneurship programs.

Recent Publications: Refereed Journal Articles

• Liang, C. & Dunn, P. (2011). Satisfaction or Business Savvy – Examining the Outcome of New Venture Creation with Respect to Entrepreneurial Characteristics, Expectation, Optimism, Realism, and Pessimism, Academy of Entrepreneurship, Vol. 17, No. 2, pp 97-116 .
• Dunn, P. & Liang, C. (2011). Finance Professors’ Reaction to Some Entrepreneurial and Small Business Financial Planning and Management Problem Issues, Small Business Institute Journal. Vol. 7 April 1, 2011, pp. 11-28.
• Zvarova K, Ursiny M, Giebink T, Liang K, Blaivas JG, Zvara P: Recording urinary flow and lower urinary tract symptoms using sonouroflowmetry. Canadian Journal of Urology, June 2011; 18(3):5689-5694
• Dunn, P. & Liang, C. (2011). A Comparison of Entrepreneurship/Small Business and Finance Professors’ Reaction to Selected Entrepreneurial and Small Business Financial Planning and Management Issues, Journal of Entrepreneurship Education, Vol. 14, pp. 93-106.

Professional Societies

American Agricultural Economics Association

American Economics Association

National Association for Female Executives

Northeast Resource and Agricultural Economics Association

Small Business Institute Association

United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Federation of Business Disciplines

Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Community Development Society

Faculty Directory

• Jane Kolodinsky, Chair
• Lisa Aultman-Hall
• Jay Ashman
• Daniel Baker
• David Conner
• Chris Evans
• Joshua Farley
• Charles Ferreira
• Diane Gayer
• Sarah Heiss Elek
• Shoshanah Inwood
• Christopher Koliba
• Jonathan Leonard
• Chyi-Lyi (Kathleen) Liang
• Edward McMahon
• Bob Parsons
• Thomas Patterson
• Jane Petrillo
• Fred Schmidt
• Tao Sun
• Qingbin Wang
• Richard Watts
• Asim Zia