George Stone, Ph.D.
Chair, Education Division
Professor of Education
Ph.D., Southern Illinois University
M.A., Southern Illinois University
B.A., Southern Illinois University
Office: 336 Walker Hall
Phone: (479) 979-1410
E-Mail: gstone@ozarks.edu
Dr. Stone came to the University of the Ozarks in January 2001 as Professor of Education and Chair of the Division of Education from Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa where he was Professor and Dean, School of Education. He earned his B.A. degree from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale with majors in both history and government. His M.A. was awarded in history from Southern Illinois. He completed a Ph.D. major in American history at Ball State University and then transferred back to Southern Illinois where he finished his degree in cultural foundations of education with emphasis in both educational history and educational philosophy. While at Southern Illinois, he was a doctoral student of George S. Counts, father of the school of Social Reconstructionism.
Dr. Stone taught for nineteen years at Sterling College, Sterling, Kansas where he served as Chair, Division of Education and later as Chair, Division of Humanities and Department Head of History/Government. When he left Sterling for Lyon College to be the second Rountree Caldwell Bryan Distinguished Professor of Education, he held full professorships on three faculties, history/government, education and philosophy. After almost nine years as a tenured professor at Lyon, he moved to Buena Vista University as dean. He attended the Wye Seminar in Maryland and has won three teaching awards, including a National Teaching Fellowship. Dr. Stone has made scholarly presentations at many conferences and has publications in education, history and philosophy. The Center for Dewey Studies, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, lists him as a John Dewey Scholar for his research and publications on the thought of John Dewey. Additionally, his major grant proposals have been funded by such organizations as the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, the Association of American Colleges, U.S. Department of Education (FIPSE) and the Kansas Committee for the Humanities. He is a member of four honor socieities, including Phi Kappa Phi, Pi Gamma Mu, Kappa Delta Pi and the professional-honor society of Phi Delta Kappa
In addition to teaching, research and writing, Dr. Stone has been involved in various community activities, including work with the Boy Scouts of America and work as a consultant and board member for two museums. He is a long-time Kiwanian and has served over the years in the offices of President, Secretary and board member. While at Sterling College, he was appointed by U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Hodel, to the Santa Fe Trail National Advisory Council to advise the U.S. Park Service on the development of the Santa Fe Trail National Historic Park, a 900 mile national park made up of public and private lands from just east of Kansas City, Missouri through the states of Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado and New Mexico. He was appointed consultant to the National Endowment for the Humanities and has worked with three state departments of education. Dr. Stone has held an amateur radio license since he was a sophomore in high school and for many years has served as a radio operator in either the U.S. Army Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS) or the U.S. Navy/Marine MARS program.
When asked why he came to Ozarks, Dr. Stone replied “I was offered the opportunity to help lead a teacher education program in a new direction and I wanted to do it! I believe there is nothing more important than the preparation of teachers for the Republic. Teachers are entrusted by both parents and the state to help mold the minds of children into responsible citizens for our democratic social order. Just as it takes a village to rear a child, it takes University professors in partnership with public and private school faculties and administrators, business people and parents to cooperatively educate our teachers. The University of the Ozarks and the Clarksville area have those kinds of people eagerly interested in coming together to accomplish the task. In addition, thanks to the generosity of the Walker family, Ozarks has just opened Walker Hall, a seven million dollar state-of-the-art, high tech, communications and teacher education facility, that is the most advanced teacher education facility I have seen in recent years. As Chair of the Dr. Wiley Lin Hurie Teacher Education Center, I have the good fortune to be in the right place at the right time!” he said.
“I enjoy working with Ozarks students,” said Dr. Stone. “Not only do we work together in the classes, but students are often in my office talking about whatever is on their minds. I’m faculty counselor to the Ozarks’ Alpha Alpha Sigma Chapter of Kappa Delta Pi: An International Honor Society in Education and I strongly support the Ozarks Student Education Association, our traditional student education organization.”
“A student could make no better college choice than Ozarks,” says Dr. Stone. “I would invite parents and students to examine the credentials of faculty listed in our college catalog for evidence of that claim. I am honored to work with these people,” he said. “My colleagues have taken their degrees from some of the finest graduate schools in the nation and are among the best teachers I have ever met. Just ask any student at Ozarks!” he said. Dr. Stone and his wife Helen have five children and ten grandchildren.
