Dr. Crystal Harris
June 25, 2021–Dr. Crystal Harris has been named dean of the College of Science and Health at Missouri Western State University effective July 1. Dr. Harris has served as interim dean since the college was created one year ago.
“Dr. Harris has served Missouri Western with distinction for more than 20 years,” said Dr. Elizabeth Kennedy, Missouri Western’s president. “Most recently, in addition to her duties as Interim Dean, Dr. Harris has provided invaluable leadership as coordinator of our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She deserves much of the credit for helping our campus successfully navigate through unprecedented challenges.”
Dr. Harris came to Missouri Western in 1999, beginning as a nursing faculty member. In 2013, she became Coordinator of Missouri Western’s RN to BSN program. In the summer of 2016, she began serving as Interim Director of the Department of Nursing and Allied Health, then became Associate Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Professions. As Interim Dean, she has helped us establish two new undergraduate programs in recent months: Cybersecurity and Respiratory Therapy.
Prior to coming to Missouri Western, Dr. Harris worked in the St. Luke’s Health System for 13 years, starting as a nurse and finishing as Director of St. Luke’s Northland Home Care and Wright Memorial Home Care.
Dr. Harris earned a nursing diploma from St. Luke’s College of Health Sciences in Kansas City, Missouri; a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri; a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Kansas School of Nursing at the KU Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas; and a Ph.D. in Nursing from the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
Missouri Western State University is a student-centered learning community preparing individuals for lives of excellence through applied learning. Missouri Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit missouriwestern.edu.