KSU already offers three doctoral degrees, but this would be its first Ph.D.
The program includes an emphasis on peacekeeping, peace operations and humanitarian operations. There is a need for graduates with such skills who can be placed with research institutes, nongovernmental organizations and the State Department, KSU President Dr. Dan Papp said.
"With the increasing and large-scale involvement of the U.S., of not-for-profit organizations, of businesses and of the government in cross-border and international operations, this becomes a degree that is of great value across a host of different human endeavors," Papp said.
An example of where a graduate of the program may prove useful, Papp said, is in the matter of the Haitian relief groups that have attempted to relocate Haitian orphans outside Haiti, prompting some Haitian officials to balk at the attempt.
"The graduates of this program would be trained both in the areas of cross-cultural communications and in conflict management and in conflict escalation reduction techniques, understanding that folks with different cultures and backgrounds look at things in different ways. (Graduates) would be trained and educated in ways to tamper down what in the military world you call an escalation spiral," he said.
KSU already offers a master's degree in conflict management, which Papp describes as one of the best in the country. The Ph.D. program, which would be housed in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, would likely begin in January with a class of 10 to 20 students, said Dr. Lindley Black, KSU's provost. If approved, the program would need five new faculty members as well as a program director and administrative support, although they can be phased in over the next two years.
KSU's three doctorates are in educational leadership (Ed.D.), business administration (DBA) and nursing science (DNS).
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