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WIU Department of Physics Chair Kishor Kapale
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Kapale Named Chair of WIU's Physics Department

August 31, 2020

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MACOMB, IL – Western Illinois University Professor Kishor Kapale has been named chair of the WIU Department of Physics, according to College of Arts and Sciences Dean Sue Martinelli-Fernandez. Kapale has served as the interim department chair since Jan. 1, 2019.

"Dr. Kapale is creative, professional and understands his discipline in the 21st century," said Martinelli-Fernandez. "I especially appreciate how he reaches out to other programs and majors, both inside the College of Arts and Sciences and in other colleges across campus. I also thank him for the continuing recruitment efforts in India that he and the WIU School of Graduate Studies are collaborating on."

Kapale came to WIU in 2007, and was promoted to full professor in 2016. He was Western's Distinguished Faculty Lecturer in 2019. He also served as the department's graduate coordinator and is co-founder of the WIU Graduate Research Conference.

During his time at Western, Kapale has been awarded the WIU College of Arts and Sciences Community Service Award, the Center for Innovation in Teaching and Research's Best in Track Award, the WIU Professional Achievement Award 10 times, and has received a WIU Grant Writing Fellowship Award and the College of Arts and Science Faculty Mentor Research Award.

He has served as a research adviser and as a referee for numerous international journals. His research has been published in the prestigious Physical Review Letters (PRL).

Kapale has served on numerous University committees and has organized numerous events for the community, including sky-viewing events and astronomy courses. He also serves as the adviser and manager for the award-winning Macomb Bots 4-H robotics club team. Kapale also manages and coaches the FIRST Lego Robotics teams for local elementary school children. Last year, Kapale helped start a high school-level robotics team, the 4-H Macomb Mega Bots. Undergraduate WIU students are mentoring the students in the middle school and high school teams, and the activities will be restarted once it is safe to do so.

He earned his doctorate in theoretical quantum optics from Texas A & M, his master's degree in physics from the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay and his bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Bombay.

For more information about the WIU Department of Physics, visit wiu.edu/physics.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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