Jennifer Purcell
Dr. Jennifer W. Purcell is an Associate Professor in the School of Government and International Affairs in the Norman J. Radow College of Humanities and Social Sciences (RCHSS) at Kennesaw State University. She previously earned promotion and tenure in the former Department of Leadership and Integrative Studies at KSU.
Purcell is the GA State Chair for the ACE Women's Network and serves as the liaison between the Network and institutional representations throughout the state, including the University System of Georgia, the Technical College System of Georgia, and private institutions. She serves as the Lead Mentor for the CETL Parents in Academia Mutual Mentoring Group in Spring 2023 and also served as the KSU Faculty Diversity Fellow for Gender and Work Life Issues through the Office of Diversity and Inclusion during the 2021-2022 academic year. The competitive fellowship included a funding award to support her collaborative research on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on women in higher education and resulted in multiple publications, presentations, and webinars, including "The Covid Shift: Working women's punctuated equilibrium" (Purcell at al., 2022).
Purcell is a leadership scholar whose research explores leadership capacity building in public organizations and their cross-sector partnerships. Her research to date focuses on organization development within higher education through institutions and professional and research associations. Purcell's scholarship has earned university and national recognition. Purcell received the 2020 Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activity Award from the University College. Purcell was previously recognized with KSU's 2018 Outstanding Early Career Faculty Award. In 2016, Purcell received the prestigious AASCU John Saltmarsh Award for Emerging Leaders in Civic Engagement which is awarded through the American Democracy Project. In the same year, she was also recognized with the Kiesler Service Award, which honors student-centered teaching and service. In 2015, Purcell received the University College Faculty Development Award in recognition of her promising research agenda.
Purcell serves in multiple leadership roles at the national, university, college, and department levels, including service as the Program Co-Chair for the Emerging Engagement Scholars Workshop, an former Associate Editor for the Journal for Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, the 2018-2019 KSU Faculty Senate President and multi-term member of the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, a former AAUP@KSU Vice-President, a member of the University College Faculty Committee, and Chair of the Leadership and Integrative Studies Strategic Planning Committee. Purcell also served as a member of the Executive Committee of the Graduate Policy and Curriculum Committee prior to being appointed by The Graduate College Dean to serve as the inaugural Graduate Faculty Fellow and Interim Graduate Program Coordinator for the Graduate Certificate in Leadership and Ethics.
Previously, Purcell served in a variety of professional and administrative roles in higher education and the nonprofit sector that supported leadership development and community engagement.
Purcell earned an Ed.D. in Adult Education with foci in leadership, learning, and organization development and a Graduate Certificate in Organization Coaching from the University of Georgia, a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in city management from Valdosta State University, and a B.A. in Sociology and minor in Business Administration from Mercer University.
Purcell is Georgia native and resides in Kennesaw with her husband, Matthew, their son, and Golden Retriever. She enjoys family adventures, international travel, kayaking, and birding.
For additional information, Dr. Purcell may be reached via email at jwpurcell@kennesaw.edu. She can also be reached via a variety of social media platforms, including those linked below. Her personal website is www.jenniferpurcell.com.
