David Dees, Ph.D., has served in so many different roles, for so many years at Ā鶹“«Ć½, that it is hard to keep track of his journey as a Golden Flash.
He has worn many, many hats at Kent State, but because of his tireless work on behalf of the Columbiana County campuses and the lasting legacy of his commitment to student success, Dees is being honored as the 2025 Friend of the Campus by Ā鶹“«Ć½ at Salem. This is the highest honor presented annually to non-students, recognizing those who support increasing access to higher education in Salem and surrounding communities.
His connection to the Salem Campus began as a faculty member in 1999 and serving as the interim assistant dean at Kent State Salem in 2009. Dees also served as the interim and, then, fulltime dean and chief administrative officer for the Columbiana County campuses for seven years. He currently serves as an associate professor of cultural foundations on the Kent Campus and is an elected member of the Faculty Senate.
While dean of the Columbiana County campuses, he simultaneously served for three years as Kent Stateās interim vice president for System Integration, supervising all Regional Campus operations and budgets of more than $80 million.
As a faculty member at Kent State Salem, Dees founded and served as co-director for the Rural Scholars program. He worked to raise more than $3 million for a program that offers first-generation college-bound students from all Columbiana County school districts a college access program designed to give them and their families the knowledge, rigorous academic exposure and social support they will need to be successful at a world-class university.
Now known as the Rising Scholars program, his model was expanded to all of Kent Stateās campuses. Students begin the program in seventh grade and continue through high school graduation. The goal is for every student in the Rising Scholars program to complete their chosen paths of success, whether it is college, the military or the workforce, and ultimately reinvest their talents in their communities.
"It is tremendously humbling to be recognized as a Friend of the Salem Campus,ā Dees offered. āThis campus, and Kent State in general, has been the cornerstone to most of my work in higher education. The Salem Campus is where I learned the value of higher education in changing a community, the importance of having supportive colleagues that share your vision, and the role that individuals can play, if empowered to do so, in making a positive impact on our world.
āThis campus has always been that supportive friend in my life, and I am humbled to be recognized as a friend in return,ā he continued. āThis truly represents one of the most cherished honors I have ever received in my professional career."
Dees began his journey at Kent State in 1991 as a teaching fellow in the theatre department, followed by a fellowship in the College of Education. He has served as an adjunct faculty member, part-time faculty, assistant professor and tenured associate professor, as well as a faculty associate and a senior faculty associate.
To get to this point, however, Deesā Kent State career has taken him to all corners of the university.
He has taught within the College of Education; the School of Theatre and Dance; and the College of Education, Health and Human Services. His courses include communications; theatre; educational foundations and special services; and cultural foundations.
He has fulfilled roles on the Kent Campus, the Tuscarawas Campus, the East Liverpool Campus and the Salem Campus, as well as the combined Regional Campus system.
He worked with the Faculty Professional Development Center; the Office of Quality Initiatives, Assessment and Curriculum; and helped create the Center for Teaching and Learning.
Deesā curriculum vitae includes 23 pages listing his numerous awards, publications, presentations, workshops, campus service, community involvement, curriculum development and numerous other credentials.
Since returning to the faculty, Dees continues to find ways to follow his passion for education as a space for personal and community change. Currently, he co-leads the Interprofessional Leadership doctorate degree within the College of Education. This degree focuses on developing scholarly practitioners that "...can construct and apply knowledge to make a positive difference in the lives of individuals, families, organizations and communities."
Additionally, Dees continues to lead a variety of teams that are re-designing the undergraduate general education requirements at Kent State to create educated citizens who understand the democratic, social and moral responsibility associated with a college education. He currently teaches courses in leadership; power and politics; and education in a democratic society.
Dees earned his bachelorās degree in communication from the University of Kentucky in 1987, followed by a masterās degree in theatre in 1989. He received his doctorate degree in educational foundations from Kent State in 2000.
Dees and his wife, Jen, live in Lisbon with their two daughters. His wife is a teacher with the Salem City Schools and his daughters are both Kent State students.
Cutline A: David Dees, Ph.D., the 2025 Friend of the Kent State Salem Campus.
Cutline B: David Dees (right) received his award from Denise A. Seachrist, Ph.D., dean and CAO of the Kent State Salem Campus.
Cutline C: David Dees and his wife, Jen.