Chad Kruger Wins First Regius Award

Chad Kruger, 1997 graduate of Northwest University majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies, was awarded the first Regius Award in a ceremony Feb. 22 at Butterfield Chapel.

The Regius Award is presented by the College of Arts and Sciences at Northwest University. “The purpose of this award is to recognize graduates who demonstrate outstanding professional accomplishments and commitment to both learning and service,” stated Darrell Hobson, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Special guest speaker for the Regius Awards Lecture was Dr. Grant Wacker (BA, Stanford; PhD, Harvard), Professor of Christian History at Duke University Divinity School. In 1995 he was president of the Society for Pentecostal Studies, and from 1997 to 2004 he served as a senior editor of the quarterly journal Church history: Studies in Christianity and Culture. In 2008, Wacker is slated to become president of the American Society of Church History.

In addition to giving the inaugural Regius Awards Lecture, Dr. Wacker spoke in Chapel on Feb. 21 and 23. To read more about him and to hear MP3s of his lectures, click here.

Chad Kruger completed his MS and PhD studies in Land Resources at the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin—Madison.

In the fall of 2003, he served as a visiting professor at the Evergreen State College.

In January of 2004, Chad was hired by the Washington State University Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources to coordinate the “Climate Friendly Farming Project,” a five-year, multi-disciplinary research and education project evaluating agricultural technologies that can help mitigate global climate change, funded by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation.

In July of 2006, Chad was promoted to be a member of the WSU faculty in the position of BIOAg Educator. In this new capacity, he continues to coordinate the Climate Friendly Farming Project, but also has additional responsibilities with WSU’s BIOAg Program (Biologically Intensive Agriculture and Organic Farming) and the WSU Center for Bioproducts & Bioenergy.

In his acceptance remarks, Dr. Kruger praised the quality of the education he received at Northwest University, stating that it prepared him to compete successfully against the graduates of prestigious Ivy League schools in his graduate studies.

Regius Award winner Dr. Chad Kruger (center) with Northwest University professors Dr. LeRoy Johnson, Dr. Bill Randolph, Dr. Darrell Hobson, and Dr. Eric Steinkamp.

Chad Kruger and family: Parents Wendell and LaDonna, wife Tonya and children Alexis and Zakkary. Not photographed is their daughter Jocelyn.