Kenneth S. Hawkinson is an American academic administrator and

communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

scholar serving as the 12th president of

Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Kutztown University of Pennsylvania (Kutztown University or KU) is a public university in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher ...

. He assumed office on July 1, 2015.

Early life and education

Hawkinson is a native of Carpentersville, Illinois. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and Master of Arts in speech communication from

Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. History Western Illin ...

, followed by a PhD in speech communication and performance from

Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU or SIUC) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois. Founded in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. The university enrolls students from all 50 s ...

. As a

Fulbright scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

, Hawkinson taught abroad at the

University of Ouagadougou Founded in 1974, the University of Ouagadougou (UO; french: Université de Ouagadougou) is in the area of Dagnöen Nord (pronounced dag-no-en noor) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. It was officially renamed in 2015 as l’Université Ouaga 1 Profess ...

. He also conducted research in African history and folklore.

Career

Hawkinson served as a member of the

Illinois National Guard The Illinois National Guard comprises both Army National Guard and Air National Guard components of Illinois. As of 2013, the Illinois National Guard has approximately 13,200 members. The National Guard is the only United States military force emp ...

and

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. As a field artillery officer and executive officer for a field artillery battery, he was called to active duty as an infantry officer in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. He was also a volunteer with the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

. In 2016, Hawkinson was inducted into the

U.S. Army ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

National Hall of Fame. Hawkinson was an assistant professor, associate professor, and full professor of communication at

. He later worked as the provost and academic vice president, associate provost, and associate vice president for budget, planning and personnel. Hawkinson was selected as the 12th president of

in 2015, succeeding F. Javier Cevallos.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawkinson, Kenneth Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Carpentersville, Illinois Western Illinois University alumni Southern Illinois University Carbondale alumni University of Ouagadougou faculty Western Illinois University faculty Kutztown University of Pennsylvania faculty Peace Corps volunteers