HONORARY DOCTORAL DEGREE
KAREN W. MORSE patents to her name, has been published extensively in the field of chemistry, and was actively involved with the American Chemical Society and the National Science Foundation, serving on numerous committees, boards, and review panels. In April 1997, Dr. Morse received the Francis P. Garvan-John M. Olin Award, one of the American Chemical Society’s highest honors. She is also a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Involvement with female colleagues early on in her career led Dr. Morse to become an advocate for issues facing women in academia. She became an integral part of the USU Status of Women Committee in order to help improve the standing of female faculty and students. Dr. Morse’s role as a mentor to fellow women on campus, including female students, would play an ever-increasing role throughout her life. Early in her career, she served as faculty advisor to the newly formed female physics students club, still in existence today as the USU Women in Physics Group. This passion would lead Dr. Morse and her husband Joseph, who served as director of Honors and as an associate professor of chemistry, to create the Morse Scholarship at USU, an endowment to assist future generations of students in the Honors Program. Later, at Western Washington University, Dr. Morse established the Karen W. Morse Institute for Leadership at Western Washington University to provide opportunities for students to learn about and develop their leadership potential through academic courses, professional speakers, and a collaborative learning and leading experience.
Karen W. Morse is a proven leader thanks to an illustrious career that included numerous accolades from the scientific community due to her expertise in chemistry, but also because of her work alongside many peers to change the status of women on the university campus. From a career beginning as a research chemist at the Ballistic Research Lab at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, and culminating in her serving as the first female president of Western Washington University, Dr. Morse has been known as a trailblazer and inspiration for women pursuing science careers in academia. Dr. Morse joined Utah State University’s Department of Chemistry in 1968 as a part-time lecturer, one of only two female faculty in the College of Science at the time. Her time at the university would create many opportunities to lead in a time of great change. During her quarter of a century at USU, Dr. Morse was named the first female department head of chemistry, one of just three women in the United States at the time serving in that capacity in the area of the sciences; was the first female dean of science, the only female dean of science at a research university; and was the first female vice president and provost of academic affairs. Throughout her career in academia, Dr. Morse continued to pursue and further her chemistry research. She has three
During Dr. Morse’s tenure as president from 1993 to 2008, Western Washington University experienced tremendous growth – of the campus, the faculty, and the student body – while elevating its national reputation. She credits her success as a leader to the foundation Utah State University provided for her, particularly with its focus on student involvement in scholarly activity and excellence and commitment in the classroom. For her inspirational leadership and success in research, as well as for her unwavering commitment to provide opportunities for supporting and advancing women in the studies of science, Utah State University is proud to bestow upon Karen W. Morse the honorary degree, Doctor of Science.
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