On Point

Dr. Chris Kukk sees Longwood’s Honors College for Citizen Scholars as a place where students and faculty can experiment and ask new questions.

Dr. Chris Kukk sees Longwood’s Honors College for Citizen Scholars as a place where students and faculty can experiment and ask new questions.

Sky’s the Limit

New dean says Honors College has the potential to become a nationally known center for the thinkers of tomorrow

The new dean of Longwood’s Cormier Honors College for Citizen Scholars is absolutely bubbling with ideas.

“An honors college is best when it’s an experimental educational laboratory,” says Dr. Chris Kukk, who came to Longwood this summer from Western Connecticut State University, where he was the founding director of the Center for Compassion, Creativity and Innovation.

“We have a place here where new ideas can be tried out, and I love that. We’ve got this incredibly strong foundation that already allows students and professors to wander into different areas and find new ideas and ask new questions, and that’s so powerful. Questions make the engine of civil society rocket forward.”

In the next breath, he talks about the Cormier Honors College as a hub for social entrepreneurship and its potential to be a nationally known center for the thinkers and citizens of tomorrow.

“When you put these really talented students from a lot of different backgrounds who have a lot of different interests in a situation that allows for experimentation, it drives the university forward,” he said.

Kukk, who was a professor of political science and social science at Western Connecticut, replaces Dr. Alix Fink, who has moved into a new role as associate provost of research and academic initiatives. Kukk is taking over the honors program at a time when it is thriving, said Dr. Larissa Smith, provost and vice president for academic affairs.

“The honors college has grown exponentially over the last few years and is the keystone of Longwood’s academic experience. Chris brings not only the expertise but a dream-big quality that will inspire and prepare the citizen leaders of the 21st century,” she said.

Kukk earned his Ph.D. in political science from Boston College and was an international security fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. A Fulbright scholar, he had been on the faculty at Western Connecticut State University since 2001. 

He’s also the author of The Compassionate Achiever, which outlines the centerpiece of his philosophy: that compassion is the key to a successful and good society. 

“The strongest societies are the most compassionate,” he said, “in that citizens take care of each other and make decisions with empathy and a commitment to help. It’s about the long game—over time, the most compassionate wins out. That’s what I’ve found so inspiring about Longwood—as an institution it looks at the long term and creating the best civically engaged, compassionate citizen leaders it can.”—Matthew McWilliams

That’s what I’ve found so inspiring about Longwood—as an institution it looks at the long term and creating the best civically engaged, compassionate citizen leaders it can.”

Dr. Chris Kukk
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