Faculty and Staff

Director

Dr. Kevin Dodson has taught philosophy at Lamar University since 1991 and now holds the rank of Professor.  He attended the University of Washington, where he graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Philosophy and was accepted into the UW chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.  After a brief rest, Dr. Dodson went on to study philosophy at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, completing his Ph.D. in 1991.  Since then, he has served as an officer in several professional organizations.  Dr. Dodson’s scholarship has focused on the history of modern philosophy, moral and political theory, and the philosophy of history, and he has received support for his work from the German Academic Exchange Service and the National Endowment for the Humanities.  In addition to presenting papers at both national conferences and international congresses, Dr. Dodson has published numerous articles and is a coeditor of the Online Encyclopedia of Enlightenment and Revolution and senior editor of Ways of Knowing:  Classical and Contemporary Readings in the Philosophy of Knowledge (Kendall/Hunt).  Dr. Dodson began serving as Assistant Director in 2004 and was appointed Interim Director in 2008.

Assistant Director

Dr. Nicki Michalski has been at Lamar University since 1999. She received her master's degree from Eastern Michigan University and her PhD from Wayne State University. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication where she teaches classing ranging from public speaking and performance studies to rhetorical theory. her areas of research include rhetorical criticism and popular culture. She has been a member of the honors faculty at Lamar since 1999 teaching Honors Public Speaking and seminars dealing with rhetorical criticism. Dr. Michalski is currently serving as the Interim Assistant Director of the Honors Program.

Executive Assistant

Honors Program Executive Assistant Kim Vizena is the mainstay of our office. Mrs. Vizena joined the Honors Program staff in June 2006.