Institute Faculty and Staff

Director

Dr. Chad Stebbins
Phone: 417.625.9736
Fax: 417.659.4445

Dr. Chad D. Stebbins became director of the Institute of International Studies on July 1, 1999, after spending 16 months as assistant director. Dr. Stebbins is also a professor of journalism and advised Missouri Southern's weekly student newspaper, The Chart, for 15 years. He has a master's degree in mass communication from the University of Central Missouri and a Ph.D. in mass communication from Bowling Green State University. A scholar in community journalism, Dr. Stebbins is the author of All the News Is Fit to Print: Profile of a Country Editor, published by the University of Missouri Press in 1998. He is also the executive director of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors, which is headquartered at Missouri Southern. Stebbins has traveled to France, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Ireland, England, Croatia, Russia, China, Taiwan, Senegal, Ivory Coast, and the British Virgin Islands speaking at international conferences and negotiating agreements and partnerships for Missouri Southern. He is a member of the Advisory Council for the Paris-based Center for the Study of International Communications and has helped develop the International Media Seminar in conjunction with the Center and the American University of Paris

Director, IEP

Kimberly Kester
Phone: 417.625.9821
Fax: 417.659.4445

Kimberly Kester is the director of the International English Program. She has more than 10 years of experience teaching English at the secondary and post-secondary levels. She has a B.A. in English Language and Literature from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke and a M.Ed. in TESOL from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. She previously taught English in North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Oklahoma. She has also taught classes in English as a Second Language and American history/culture in Estonia, Romania, and Mexico. Additionally, she has completed courses in Online Teaching Methods, Online Course Development, and Techniques for Successful Distance Teaching. Currently, she is interested in the educational systems and values of Arab countries and the adaptation of Arab students into American school environments.

Kaitlin Gram, Assistant Professor

Kaitlin Gram
Phone: 417.625.9821
Fax: 417.659.4445

Kaitlin Gram has three years of experience teaching ESL at the university level. She has also instructed ESL at the high school level for Lincoln Public Schools in Lincoln, Nebraska and for the Adult Basic Education program at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Nebraska. Kaitlin has spent most of her career instructing in the Applied English Center at the University of Kansas, specializing in Speaking & Listening English courses and curriculum development. Now, at Missouri Southern State University, she teaches a variety of courses at many different levels. Kaitlin has a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature & Music from Nebraska Wesleyan University and a Master's in Education, TESOL & Applied Linguistics, from the University of Kansas. Currently, Kaitlin is compiling a comparative analysis of entry and exit level assessments between large and small university IEP courses. She is originally from Kansas City, Missouri and close to her family. In her spare time, Kaitlin enjoys camping, playing Frisbee golf, and playing with her cat—Sam.

Secretary

Cindy Jordan
Phone: 417.659.4442
Fax: 417.659.4445

Cindy Jordan is the secretary to the Institute of International Studies. She came to MSSU in 1992 and has worked in several different areas before coming to the Institute in December 2009. Her hobbies include reading, camping, boating, and traveling. Although she has traveled extensively throughout the U.S., she has never traveled abroad, but hopes to someday. She is married and has three children and two grandchildren. Mrs. Jordan is recovering from severe injuries sustained in the May 22, 2011 Joplin tornado and was able to return to work on Sept. 12, 2011.