Honors College

Welcome to our Tiger home - the Fort Hays State University Honors College

Here in the FHSU Honors College we strive to unite the two core elements of a great educational institution: ability and commitment. Our dedicated staff and faculty are committed to your academic success, professional development, and career readiness. In every field we teach at FHSU, Honors College students excel.

Our students are the foundation of our success. They are engaged leaders in the classroom, members in every kind of campus organization, working in the larger community, and traveling around the world. They embody the four pillars of our Honors College educational mission: academic excellence, engagement, leadership, and continuous growth.

Whether you are a prospective student, a parent, another member of our campus community, or a broader stakeholder, we encourage you to contact us. We are here to foster excellence at FHSU, and beyond, in any way we can. We hope you will consider joining us on that exciting and engaging journey.

Kevin S. Amidon, Honors College Director

Kathay Johnson, Honors College Administrative Specialist

 

Every gift matters in creating a stronger Fort Hays State University.
To designate a gift for the Honors College, select “Other” designation
and type “Honors College” in the text field.

Meet the Honors College Staff

KEVIN S. AMIDON, DIRECTOR
ksamidon@fhsu.edu
785-628-4748
Forsyth Library 074

Kevin Amidon serves as Director of the Honors College at Fort Hays State University, where he is also Associate Professor of Modern Languages and Instructor of Philosophy.

He studied German, economics, history, musicology, and art history in Ann Arbor, Freiburg, Princeton, Frankfurt am Main, and Berlin, and received his Ph.D. in Germanic Languages and Literatures at Princeton University in 2001. He has published a wide range of articles on critical theory, gender history and theory, eugenics, race theory, evolutionary thought, the Frankfurt School, German and American history, opera, theater, and pedagogy. His current research projects include further work on cultures of persuasion in the German biological sciences 1890-1945, and on the philosophy of music in mid-twentieth century Germany and its consequences for critical theory. During 2003-2004 he was a Postdoctoral Fellow of the Berlin Program for Advanced German and European Studies at the Freie Universität Berlin. He has won major university awards for his teaching three times during his career. Beyond his university duties he performs regularly as a violinist with the Hays Symphony, often as concertmaster, and pursues his hobby restoring and maintaining classic European automobile and motorcycle engines.

Professor Amidon’s repository of open-access publications can be found at: https://works.bepress.com/kevin_amidon/

Track Kevin's scholarly activity at Google Scholar, and you can learn more about all of his many interests at https://kevinsamidon.com. 

KATHAY JOHNSON, ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST
kljohnson2@fhsu.edu 
785-628-4744
Forsyth Library 072

Kathay is a Fort Hays State University graduate, she majored in English and History, and is happy to return to the university and work with our amazing students. She is continuing her education at Fort Hays to earn a Masters of Science in Education, in Higher Education Student Affairs. Kathay and her husband, Jason, moved from Longmont, CO where she worked for Boulder County IT. Her husband’s wonderful art fills the walls of her office, and surrounding areas, in the Forsyth basement so come by and say hello! She almost always has treats. Once a Tiger, always a Tiger!

MICHELLE KLECAN, SUCCESS & ENGAGEMENT COORDINATOR

Michelle is a junior from Odell, NE majoring in Business Management. Aside from hitting curbs while longboarding, jamming to her vinyl records, listening to true crime podcasts, and miraculously wandering to any Starbucks nearby, Michelle is involved in Catholic Disciples and enjoys attending any and every sporting event that she can (if she isn’t drowning in assignments). The only sport she wished was more popular in Kansas is hockey, but she’ll have to settle for what she has.

CJ GIBSON, RECRUITMENT & OUTREACH COORDINATOR

CJ is a sophomore English and Psychology major, but he only offers advice in exchange for coffee. When he's not studying, listening to audiobooks on long walks, or hyping up the Honors College, CJ is involved in Tiger Media Network, Sigma Tau Delta, Psi Chi, and Fort Hays Honor Society. He’s a fourth generation Tiger who overly romanticizes the Walden lifestyle. Since joining the Honors College, he's had his future (accurately!) predicted in tarot by an Honorable, has had his ribcage tattooed, and has made a semi-spontaneous road trip to Boulder. He's written and presented about misophonia and hopes to someday advocate for more student-centered education as a prospective school psychologist.

JAMES BUDGE, HONORS AMBASSADOR

James is a senior studying marketing and music at Fort Hays State University. He currently works as a Line Crewmember for Hays Aircraft LLC and is an active member of FHSU Marching, Concert, Jazz, and Pep Bands. He has a passion for marketing and enjoys working on his cars and motorcycle in his free time.