David Dees, Ph.D.

David M. Dees is an Associate Professor of Cultural Foundations at Kent State University. For over 25 years of teaching and learning in higher education, he has been trying to answer the question, “What is quality teaching?” This journey began with a B.S. in Communications and an M.A. in Theatre from the University of Kentucky. This journey has also included short stints as a college football coach, a rock-n-roll disc jockey, and theatre teacher. After earning a doctorate in Cultural Foundations of Education from Kent State University, he has spent the last decade specifically focused on the aesthetic dimensions of teaching and learning, how the human brain works, and the impact that rural/Appalachian cultural has on learning in higher education. As a self-proclaimed “hillbilly” from Kentucky, he is proud to have been recognized for his teaching through two student-nominated teaching awards (Outstanding Teaching Award, Kent State University and Teacher of the Year, Gannon University).However, he still hasn’t found a simplified answer to his life's question.