Theodore J. Kowalski, Ph.D.

Kuntz Family Chair in Educational Administration

University of Dayton

 

 

Biography

 

Theodore Kowalski was born in suburban Chicago and graduated from Hammond (IN) Bishop Noll High School.  After completing his bachelor's degree, he became a teacher and subsequently an assistant principal in suburban Indianapolis.  In 1969, he began full-time doctoral studies as a university fellow at Indiana State University and completed his Ph.D. in 1971.  From 1970 to 1974, he served as the associate superintendent for instruction in the Charleston (IL) Community Schools. Then at age 30, he became superintendent of the Tippecanoe County School Corporation in Lafayette, Indiana, a district that currently enrolls approximately 10,500 students.  During his tenure as superintendent, Dr. Kowalski also held an appointment as adjunct professor of school administration at Purdue University where he taught courses in the economics of education and school business management.  In 1979, he became a full professor in educational administration and coordinator of doctoral programs in educational administration at Saint Louis University. In 1981, he moved to Ball State University as full professor and associate dean of the Teachers College; in 1983, he was appointed dean of the Teachers College, one of the nation's largest colleges of education. In July, 2000, after having served at Ball State for 20 years, he moved to the University of Dayton where he  occupies the  Kuntz Family Chair in Educational Administration, an endowed professorship.

 

Professor Kowalski and his wife, Mary Anne, have been married since 1966. Mary Anne graduated from St. Mary-of-the-Woods College and subsequently completed a M.L.S. degree at Ball State University. They have four children and two grandchildren.

 

In addition to his duties at the University of Dayton, Professor Kowalski is editor of the Journal of School Public Relations and serves on the editorial boards of several other professional journals including The AASA Journal of Scholarship and Practice (published by the American Association of School Administrators) and the Community Education Journal (published by the National Community Education Association).  In 2000, his colleagues nationally chose him to be the editor of the 2001 National Council of Professors of Educational Administration Yearbook, the first yearbook of the new millennium.

The author of numerous books, professional articles, research papers, and monographs, Dr. Kowalski has received  awards for his research, writing, and scholarship including the Outstanding Faculty Research Award from the Teachers College at Ball State University in 1993, the Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award from the School of Education and Allied Professions at the University of Dayton in 2002 and 2005, and the Alumni Award in Scholarship from the University of Dayton in 2005. Since 1986, he has delivered over 100 invited lectures at colleges and universities and has provided consultant services to numerous education and business clients. Professor Kowalski's primary areas of research are organizational behavior/communication, decision making, and evidence-based practice.