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Vos, Boocker
Named Department Chairs in College of Arts and Sciences
Two departments in the College of Arts and
Sciences have new administrative leadership.
Morris Vos, a 30-year WIU veteran
German professor, is chair of foreign languages and literatures;
and David Boocker, a newcomer to Western, is chair of English
and journalism. Vos was named department chair Spring 2002, following
the retirement of Richard Thomas. Boocker, who joined the
University in July, takes over for Syndy Conger, who has
returned to classroom teaching for her final semester before retiring
in December.
Vos began his teaching career at Western
in 1971, became a member of the graduate faculty in 1981 and earned
professor rank in 1991. He has received numerous awards, recognitions
and citations for teaching and service within the University,
statewide and nationally. Vos received the College of Arts and
Sciences award for outstanding service in 1998 and was presented
a certificate of merit of outstanding achievement in furthering
the teaching of German in U.S. schools in 1996.
Vos has also served as a guest professor
of theological German the past three years at Trinity Evangelical
Divinity School (Deerfield, IL). He is an elected elder in the
Covenant Presbyterian Church of Macomb and is an active administrator
in the district Presbytery,
Vos earned his bachelor's degree (1966)
in English and German from Calvin College (Grand Rapids, MI) and
his master's (1968) and doctorate (1975) in German from Indiana
University. Having spent a year (1968-69) as a student at the
Free University in West Berlin on a Berlin exchange grant, he
has returned to Germany frequently in recent years for teaching,
research and travel.
Boocker came to Western Illinois following
a 13-year career at Tennessee Technological University, where
he taught freshman through graduate level composition and literature
courses, specializing in British literature. He was nominated
four times for the university's outstanding faculty award and
earned the Honors Program most valuable faculty member award (1991).
Boocker earned his bachelor's (1980) and
master's (1983) degrees in English from the University of Southwestern
Louisiana and his doctorate (1988) in English literature from
the University of Nebraska -Lincoln.
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