Each year, Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) recognizes faculty members who demonstrate the highest standards of teaching through the Society of Foundation Professors. On April 29, 2025, Dr. Scotty Dunlap, professor in the School of Safety, Security and Emergency Management, and Dr. Camille Skubik-Peplaski, professor of occupational therapy, were inducted into the Society of Foundation Professors.
“Since the inception of this great institution over a century-and-a-half ago, our professors have made EKU the School of Opportunity,” said EKU President David McFaddin. “Our exceptional faculty arrive on campus each day with a clear purpose: to enrich the lives of students through education. The efforts of this year’s Foundation Professors are deeply appreciated, and I commend their dedication to creating opportunities for students.”
The EKU Society of Foundation Professors was established to honor “creative, self-motivated exemplars of the ideal college professor.”
Full-time tenured faculty members are eligible for the Foundation Professorship, providing a $5,000 salary increase. The selection is made by a committee of members of the Society of Foundation Professors, based on the university’s standard criteria for promotion, tenure and merit.
A professor at EKU for 16 years, Dunlap is the first Foundation Professor from the School of Safety, Security and Emergency Management. Within his department, he developed a graduate research opportunity offered to approximately 300 students. While a professor at EKU, he has written five books, six peer-reviewed articles and six trade journal articles. He served in the U.S. Technical Advisory Group that created a global standard on occupational safety and health management systems, ISO 45001. He has also received the EKU Critical Thinking Teacher of the Year Award (2011 and 2012), College of Justice and Safety Outstanding Mentor of the Year Award (2018), College of Justice and Safety Distinguished Faculty Award (2018 and 2020) and Jerry Pogatshnik Graduate Faculty Award (2023).
“Being inducted into the Society of Foundation Professors is a pinnacle career achievement,” said Dunlap. “It is humbling to have the work I have done and contributions I have made to EKU to be considered worthy of becoming a part of such an esteemed group of current and past faculty.”
Dunlap was first introduced to the Society by two other Foundation Professors, Dr. Hal Blythe and Dr. Charlie Sweet. “From that early introduction and throughout my time at EKU, I grew to appreciate the Society of Foundation Professors as an elite group of professors to have walked the halls of Eastern, with only 74 being inducted since its inception,” said Dunlap.
Skubik-Peplaski has been a professor for eight years, but has been a part of the EKU community for 14. She is the third Foundation Professor from the Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy Department. During her time at EKU, she has been honored with the EKU College of Health Science Service Award (2020), Award of Merit from the Kentucky Occupational Therapy Association (2020), University Research and Creative Endeavors (URCE) Mentorship of the Month Award (2023), EKU Allen Ault Award for Online Course Excellence (2023) and EKU College of Health Sciences Scholarship Award (2024), among others.
Skubik-Peplaski enjoys teaching several occupational therapy courses. One of her favorites is a class where students conduct and execute an occupational research study. In the last three years, students have completed three sewing studies with community members with disabilities.
“My biggest aspiration is for my students to become leaders and exceptional occupational therapists that make a difference for their clients in the community,” said Skubik-Peplaski.
She applied to the Society to support her drive to help everyone find a sense of belonging and value. She wants to uplift others to feel like they are able to achieve anything at EKU and in the community.
Skubik-Peplaski and Dunlap become part of this distinguished group of Foundation Professors who have been honored for teaching excellence since the award was created in 1987.
Also at the Society for Foundation Professors event, the 2025 Dr. John D. Rowlett Award for Faculty Scholarship, Research or Professional Development was awarded to Dr. Amanda Green, associate professor of anthropology, for her project, “The Outdoor People: Explorations of Northern Sweden’s Landscapes and Belonging Across Communities.” This $5,000 award honors the memory and generosity of Dr. John D. Rowlett, whose career at EKU (1951-93) nurtured curiosity, creativity and quality instruction.
Jackie Couture, director of special collections and archives, and Debbie Whalen, special collections librarian, were honored with the Blanchard Service Award.
As an Employer of Choice, EKU proudly celebrates and acknowledges the exceptional contributions and achievements of its faculty through various recognition programs, including the Society of Foundation Professors.
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