Next semester, Winthrop will be losing a faculty member who has continued to shape the political environment on campus for 25 years after her decision to carry her efforts to another university.
Karen Kedrowski, political science professor, will become the executive director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University in January 2019.
She will be responsible for fundraising, grant writing and teaching at Iowa State, all of which are services she has been a part of on Winthrop’s campus. However, one of the big expectations of the executive director is communicating with the media to provide commentary on the Iowa Caucus.
Kedrowski will begin her position at Iowa State during the centennial of the ratification of the 19th amendment, which she said is a true inspiration for what she plans to do with her time at the university.
“I look forward to the opportunity to figure out how I can help work with other people at Iowa state to help inject the voices of women and to talk about the role of women in American politics in conjunction with the Iowa Caucus,” Kedrowski said.
After 25 years of support and opportunities that she has said gave her a diverse skill set, from event planning to dealing with the security of presidential candidates, the decision to leave Winthrop was a tough one for Kedrowski.
“I love teaching, and Winthrop students are absolutely amazing and great, and so many of them have become my friends after 25 years. Leaving my tribe won’t be easy, but I’m so glad that social media makes it easy to keep in touch with people,” Kedrowski explained.
It was through social media that led Kedrowski to join the Catt Center when she was scrolling through and saw a post about the previous director’s, Dianne Bystrom, retirement.
“I clicked on it just out of curiosity and I thought, ‘Oh holy cow, I could actually do this job,’ and I applied without really thinking that I had a shot, threw my hat in the ring and went about my business, not expecting I would hear anything. Then next thing I knew, I was interviewing, and then the next thing I knew, I had an offer. It was really accidental,” Kedrowski explained.
Kedrowski began her career at Winthrop 25 years ago, and she said that perhaps the biggest change to campus since her first day has been the growth of political engagement.
“When I see about what has happened and how much Winthrop’s footprint has grown, that’s something that I’m really proud of and I think [it] also is a huge change from what has happened in my 25 years here,” Kedrowski expressed.
Kedrowski offered some advice to freshmen as she begins her last semester at Winthrop and leaves her students with a few final parting words.
“One of the real advantages is its [Winthrop’s] intimacy, so get to know your faculty, go stop by and visit them; they want to talk to you. Second, read the syllabus and do your homework. I mean, there’s no secret to academic success that is not: being engaged, showing up and doing the work,” Kedrowski said.