It's not the heat; it's the humidity.

While Northwest Arkansas battles higher temperatures than it has seen in years, Judith Anne Garretson Folse and her husband, Joey, along with their miniature dachshund, Miss Sherlock, are getting settled in Fayetteville after a hiatus of 20 plus years.

They packed up their possessions, moved and unpacked all while listening to people discuss the heat. But after living in southern Louisiana, Folse understands both heat and humidity. She acknowledges the high temps here but is enjoying a little less humidity while trying to catch a slight breeze with her morning cup of coffee.

"I could never drink a cup of coffee outside of a morning in Baton Rouge during the summer," Folse said.

Folse knows Northwest Arkansas and the Sam M. Walton College of Business well. She earned her doctorate in marketing at Walton College and smiles when talking about many of the faculty here, noting that several were mentors and friends during her early teaching days.

"One of my passions is mentorship. Life is hard; work is hard. Conversations from both mentor and mentee perspectives help us grow professionally and personally," Folse said. "I have developed lifelong relationships with my mentors and those I've mentored, and those relationships are the most gratifying part of my career."

After she earning her Ph.D. in marketing from the U of A in 2000, she headed to Baton Rouge to work at Louisiana State University and has been there ever since.

Until now.

Folse joined Walton College on Aug. 1 as professor, the R.A. and Vivian Young Endowed Chair and the chair of the Department of Marketing.

"For the past 22 years, I have been on faculty at LSU," Folse said. "There I taught undergraduate and doctoral students, and my research focused on consumer-based strategy with implications for digital and non-digital promotions, services and relationship-marketing decisions."

At LSU, Folse held the Ourso Family Distinguished Chair in Marketing Research and was a full professor. Her work has been published by numerous academic journals including the Journal of Marketing, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Service Research, Journal of Retailing, Journal of Advertising, Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Public Policy & Marketing and Journal of Business Research, among others.

While earning her doctorate at Walton College years ago, Folse created longtime friendships and professional relationships.

"I am grateful to LSU; it is where I grew as a professor, scholar and mentor and forged lifelong friendships with the people I met inside and outside the classroom. I am also grateful to Walton College for the opportunity to work alongside the marketing faculty I admire. I am grateful that I have maintained these friendships for over 25 years. It is where incredible people accomplish extraordinary things alongside each other in a collegial environment."

As for the future, Folse plans to get to know her department in the coming months before making any big changes.

"As the new department chair of marketing, I am excited to help our marketing faculty continue to deliver excellent programs that focus on skill set development and experiential opportunities, preparing students to navigate the ever-changing business landscape."

On a personal note, she and her husband love to cook and travel. Their home is influenced by southern Louisiana culture.

"Our cooking is often influenced by French and Cajun recipes, given that my husband is from Lockport, Louisiana, south of New Orleans," Folse said. "Regarding travel, we are excited about trips throughout the state to see all that Arkansas has to offer, and we also hope to resume our travels abroad soon. We have traveled throughout Europe, especially France, and began learning French in recent years."

Bonjour Judith! Welcome to Walton!