Dr. Galen Benson

"Becoming an educator in higher education is an honor because of the responsibility inherent in enabling student success. Becoming an educator at Principia College is a distinctive privilege because of the character values entrenched within the foundation of the institution. I do believe we, as educators at Principia, can make the world a better place. I like what Martin Luther King said: 'The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of education.'"

Prior to teaching in higher education, Dr. Galen Benson spent nine years teaching in state prisons. The prison experience highlighted the necessity for increased cognitive education within education to improve decision making and student success. Dr. Benson is also an FBI trained and certified crisis and hostage negotiator; he served the State of Colorado in this capacity. Dr. Benson’s favorite classes to teach are Interpersonal Communication and Character Education.

Scholarly Interests

• Education
• Character Education
• Communication
• Student Success
• Leadership
• International Affairs
• History

Contributions to Field

Dr. Benson's research highlighted undergraduate’s perceptions and experiences of happiness, flow, self-authorship, and social connections as related to social media. As an educator, he engages students in self-reflection through enhancing communication skills, critical thinking and creativity for better decision making.

Awards

Teacher of the Year, 2021

Employee of the Quarter (State of Colorado), 2014 Team Excellence Award, 2014

Publications and Presentations

• Maryville University Higher Education Leadership Doctoral Residency, 2022: Alumni Panelist
• Doctoral Dissertation: “Perceptions and Experiences of Happiness, Flow, Self-Authorship, and Social Connections: Undergraduates and Social Media,” 2022
• Decision and Dilemmas: “Design Thinking to Become Better Decision Makers,” 2021 (thrice)
• The Buck Man Lecture Series: “Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?” 2019
• Resident Counselor Workshop: “Communication and Facilitation,” 2018
• Virtual Job Fair Employment Summit: “A Virtual Job Fair for the U.S. Military,” 2014
• The CAEPA/CDE Rendezvous Conference: "Inside the Correctional Education Classroom," 2012