During his time at CIE, Theroux specialized in the use of radio for Nonformal Education.  When combined with a doctoral dissertation about the use of entertainment formats for education, he caught the attention of the research staff at Sesame Street, where he worked for two years.  That job led him to transition to the business side of television, and he went on to earn an MBA from the Harvard Business School. He then spent three years as a manager with Time Warner Cable, and in 1984 he founded Metropolitan Cablevision and became its CEO.

In 1991 he joined the UMass Isenberg School of Management as a faculty member. In 2003 he received that year’s top honor in Innovative Pedagogy for Entrepreneurship Education from the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Theroux won the award for a course that focused on a real-time case study of a high-technology firm, Optasite, Inc., a start-up firm in the communications industry in Worcester. Five years in the making, the course, offered during the fall 2001 semester, examined the ongoing pursuits of the company. His course was also one of three finalists in the prestigious Decision Sciences Institute's annual awards for instructional innovation.

Interacting periodically with the company's president and other officers, Theroux and his students evaluated the firm's products, marketing strategy, acquisition of capital, human resources, and competitors. Each Saturday at 6 p.m., the course's full-time case writer - on site at the firm - posted new case material and related articles on a dedicated Web site. In response, students analyzed the material, discussed related issues via e-mail and in class, and forwarded their suggestions to the company.  Several CIE students took the course in 2003 and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Some of his publications analyzing the use of innovative pedagogies and real-time case studies are available here.

After teaching in the UMass Isenberg School for 28 years, he officially retired in 2020. He still teaches one course per year in the online MBA program. He is also a member of an angel investor group organized by Harvard Business School, and is currently advising two tech startups.

Other than that, he plays a lot of golf, finding good weather to do so by splitting the year between Northampton, MA and Boca Raton, Florida. [3-24]

Email: theroux@isenberg.umass.edu