Dr. Karl R. Kunkel, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Pittsburg State University, was named as Southeast Missouri State University’s next provost today.

Kunkel will begin his duties at Southeast on Feb. 15 at a salary of $190,000. He will replace Dr. Gerald McDougall, who has been interim provost this semester after Dr. Bill Eddleman stepped down from the position in May. McDougall will return to his previous position as associate provost for extended learning and the dean of the Harrison College of Business when Kunkel officially takes the provost position.

The provost serves as the chief academic officer and is responsible for the eight colleges and schools at Southeast. According to the Southeast faculty handbook, the qualifications for the job include a doctorate degree from an accredited university and scholarly or research achievements, as well as teaching and administrative experience at the college or university level.

Kunkel has been Pittsburg State’s dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, as well as a professor of sociology and justice studies, since 2011. Pittsburg State is located in Pittsburg, Kansas, which is 30 miles northwest of Joplin, Missouri.

Kunkel previously worked at Missouri State University for 17 years, where he had been the head of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology. He holds a doctoral, master’s and bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Kunkel was one of 110 candidates who applied for the position in August, and the search committee had been narrowing down the candidates throughout the semester. The top five candidates were invited to campus in October.

The search committee was led by Dr. Hamner Hill, chair of the Department of Political Science, Philosophy and Religion, who said in August that the committee’s goal was to have the new provost announced before Thanksgiving break.