Ernst named interim dean of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Morehead State University’s Dr. John Ernst has been named interim dean of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. He succeeds Dr. M. Scott McBride, who was named chancellor and chief academic officer at Penn State DuBois.
Since July 2016, Dr. Ernst has served as associate vice president for academic affairs/student success.
“With his background, Dr. Ernst is uniquely qualified to serve as the interim dean,” said Dr. Steven M. Ralston, MSU’s chief academic officer/provost. “In his past positions, Dr. Ernst worked successfully on many high priority institutional initiatives. I am confident that he will provide outstanding leadership in this new role.”
Prior to July 2016, Dr. Ernst served as interim associate vice president for academic affairs/student success.
He also served MSU previously as chair and interim chair of the Department of History, Philosophy, Religion and Legal Studies.
A Louisville native, Dr. Ernst first came to Morehead State in 1994 as a fixed-term instructor of history after serving three years on the staff of the “Kentucky Encyclopedia” with Dr. John Kleber, a Morehead State historian.
He earned his doctoral degree from the University of Kentucky, where he worked with Dr. George C. Herring, the leading Vietnam War scholar in America.
Dr. Ernst is an expert on the Vietnam War with two book authorships, including “Forging a Fateful Alliance: Michigan State University and the Vietnam War” and “The War that Never Ends: New Perspectives on the Vietnam War,” co-edited with Dr. David L. Anderson.
His love of teaching was recognized in 2001 when he was the recipient of the Master Teacher Award given by the Interfraternity Council, National Pan-Hellenic Conference and National Panhellenic Council, and in 2013 was presented the Student Government Association’s Student Choice Award for Faculty Member of the Year.
He and his wife, Joanne, a teacher for the deaf and hearing-impaired, have lived in Morehead since 1996, and have two sons and a daughter.
Find more information on the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, visit www.moreheadstate.edu/caudillcollege.
