Ashland native named president of Culver-Stockton College

Ashland native Lauren (Brownback) Schellenberger has been chosen as Culver-Stockton College's 28th president.

Schellenberger, the provost and vice president for academic affairs at the college currently, takes over the top spot on July 1. 

Culver-Stockton is a private college in Canton, Mo., with an enrollment of about 1,000 students. It was founded in 1853.

More:Simone Parlier named executive director of HSHS St. John's Children's Hospital

Schellenberger began her career at Culver-Stockton as an assistant professor of biology while completing her doctorate in biology education at Purdue University. She has extensive experience in research, teaching and industry.

Administratively, Schellenberger has served the College in executive leadership roles since 2018 and most recently as a chief academic officer in the position of provost.

“Dr. Schellenberger has displayed exceptional leadership and academic knowledge in her fifteen years with the College and has shown she will be the next great president of (Culver-Stockton)," said Ron Leftwich, the college's board of trustees' chairman.

Schellenberger succeeds Douglas B. Palmer, who announced in March he accepted the presidency at Siena Heights University in Adrian, Michigan.  

Palmer had been president of Culver-Stockton since 2020.

“I am proud to lead this forward-thinking campus community, whose focus on transferable skills and experiential learning make our graduates uniquely and supremely prepared for a dynamic world," said Schellenberger, in a news release.

Schellenberger and her husband, Steven, reside in Canton along with their two sons. 

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.