Karen Kirkendall appointed Director of the Capital Scholars Honors Program

Karen Kirkendall has been appointed Director of the Capital Scholars Honors Program, pending Board of Trustees approval at its July meeting.

For the past three years, Karen has served admirably as interim director of the program, stepping in when Dr. Karen Moranski became Associate Vice Chancellor for Undergraduate Education.

“Karen’s tenure as interim director has been marked by her high level of dedication to the students and increasing the reputation of the program throughout the state,” said Harry Berman, provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs.

Dr. Kirkendall is an Associate Professor of Liberal & Integrative Studies. Her teaching and scholarly focus is in development psychology. She is an expert on autism and related disorders. Her prior administrative experience includes serving as Chair of the Psychology Program and Director of the Office of Undergraduate Assessment. She has provided strong leadership over the years for the Faculty Personnel Policies Committee and the UIS Chapter of AAUP.

The Capital Scholars Honors Program, open to a small number of highly qualified college students, is a four-year baccalaureate experience combining an integrated core of honors-level, lower-and upper-division courses, UIS general education requirements, and any of the 23 undergraduate majors offered by UIS.