GLENVILLE, WV – The 2023 Glenville State University Faculty Award of Excellence recipient is Professor of Chemistry Dr. Kevin L. Evans. He was recognized at the spring 2023 Commencement Ceremony on Saturday, May 6. 

“Being selected for the Faculty Award of Excellence was a total surprise and an absolute honor,” Evans said. “It was an overwhelming joy to receive this recognition from my faculty colleagues, the students, and the entire university campus.”

He says Glenville State’s students are his favorite part about teaching. “Watching the students grow and ultimately succeed in their future careers makes teaching the most rewarding experience,” he added.

In addition to his teaching duties, Evans currently serves on GSU’s Board of Governors as the Faculty Representative. He is also a member of Faculty Senate, Curriculum Committee, and the Health Sciences Task Force. In his over twenty years of service at Glenville State, he has spent time on most faculty committees and has been very active in coordinating summer workshops for elementary and high school teachers and summer workshops for high school students. He is also preparing to host the Health Sciences Technology Academy workshop on Forensic Science for approximately 75 high school students; that event takes place in July on GSU’s campus.

Evans completed his undergraduate degree from Glenville State College and then went on to earn a doctorate in organic chemistry from Louisiana State University. “When I graduated from GSC, I never anticipated being a professor and definitely didn’t picture myself receiving the Faculty Award of Excellence,” he noted.

Interestingly, Glenville State Professor Emeritus Dr. Joe Evans – Kevin’s father – was the first recipient of the Faculty Award of Excellence in 1978. “I continue to follow in the footsteps of my father who has been a great inspiration and best friend,” he said.

His wife Traci is a Glenville State graduate and is currently a teacher at the Calhoun-Gilmer Career Center. Their daughter Tara graduated with a chemistry degree from Glenville State and then completed a doctorate of pharmacy degree; she is currently a pharmacist at Walgreens in Charleston, South Carolina. Daughter Ashley and her husband Kyle both have earned nursing degrees and are currently nurses at Medical University of South Carolina.

Each spring, the campus community is invited to nominate an outstanding faculty member for this award. Faculty Award of Excellence recipients must be full-time and have taught at Glenville State for at least two years to be eligible. Names of the honorees are displayed on a permanent plaque in the Heflin Administration Building.