Kelly M. Thompson to Lead Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri

The board of trustees of Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri, has chosen Kelly M. Thompson as the institution’s 26th president. When she takes office on July 1, Dr. Thompson will be the first woman president in the college’s 161-year history. The college enrolls about 800 students and women are 47 percent of the student body.

Since 2008, Dr. Thompson has served as vice president for external relations at Barton College in Wilson, North Carolina. Earlier in her career, Dr. Thompson held administrative posts at Davenport University, National Louis University, and the National College of Education.

Dr. Thompson is a graduate of the University of Illinois, where she majored in theater. She holds a master’s degree in communications and theater from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania.