Northern Kentucky University announced Bethany Vice Bowling as the new permanent dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Bowling has served as interim dean since January 2024.
Bowling started her career at NKU in 2007 as a faculty member in the Department of Biological Sciences. She was promoted to associate professor in 2013 and professor in 2019. In alignment with her passion for education leadership, Bowling also served as associate dean from 2017 to 2022 and senior associate dean from 2022 to 2023.
In 2012, Bowling was recognized for her role as an educator with the NKU Faculty Excellence for Performance in Teaching Award. She has also been recognized for her collaborations across campus with the 2023 NKU Center for Integrative Natural Sciences and Mathematics Award and many others.
“I am so proud to be able to serve the university and its students as the dean of the college of arts and sciences,” said Bowling in a press release. “Over the past year, in my capacity as interim dean, I have witnessed the dedication and passion of our students, faculty and staff, and I’m excited to continue building on our shared success.”
Bowling has taught introductory biology and genetics courses and has worked to expand experiential learning opportunities for students. Additionally, she currently serves as the principal investigator on two National Science Foundation-funded projects focused on increasing recruitment and retention in STEM, STEM Ready, an effort to improve mathematics preparation for incoming students, and Project S3OAR, a scholarship program for academically talented STEM students.
Bowling is a native Northern Kentuckian and earned her doctorate in interdisciplinary studies –biology education and her master of science degree in biology from the University of Cincinnati. She earned her bachelor’s in biology from Thomas More College. She will officially begin her tenure as dean on July 1.