UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Kathryn Drager has been named interim dean of Penn State’s College of Health and Human Development. Drager, professor of communication sciences and disorders and associate dean for research and graduate education in the college, started her new appointment July 1.
Former College of Health and Human Development Dean Ann “Nan” Crouter retired on June 30. A national search has been underway for her successor and is expected to be concluded soon.
The College of Health and Human Development offers a robust program of eight interdisciplinary fields of undergraduate and graduate degree programs, including biobehavioral health; communication sciences and disorders; health policy and administration; hospitality management; human development and family studies; kinesiology; nutritional sciences; and recreation, park, and tourism management. Centers housed in the college include the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center, Center for Childhood Obesity Research, Center for Health Care and Policy Research, Center for Healthy Aging, and the Methodology Center.
Drager received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Bethel College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and her master’s and doctoral degrees in speech-language pathology from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
Drager, who joined Penn State’s Health and Human Development faculty in 1998, has a long teaching and research history in the field of communication sciences and disorders. In 2013 she was appointed the college’s associate dean for research and graduate education.
“I have great confidence in Kathy’s leadership as we wrap up our search for a new dean of the College of Health and Human Development,” said Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost. “With its eight academic units and five interdisciplinary research centers, the college is educating the next generation of professionals who will help address population health challenges and communities’ needs. Kathy’s expertise, perspectives and leadership during this period of transition will be invaluable as we move the college’s mission forward.”