Emeritus Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Karen Mingst
After 14 years teaching and mentoring dozens of Patterson School students and leading the school, Dr. Karen Mingst retired in December 2016 as Acting Director, Lockwood Chair, and Professor of Political Science at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Mingst’s career included lecturing and teaching short courses in South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Albania, Vietnam, Japan, and the United Nations. She received two Fulbright Awards to West Africa for teaching and research in Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, and Niger. Dr. Mingst is also the co-author of several books on international organizations and global governance including International Organizations: The Politics and Processes of Global Governance (3rd ed. 2015) which is now in its 3rd edition and has been translated into several languages. During her time at UK, she received several outstanding teaching awards and in 1999-2000 was voted Distinguished Professor by the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences for outstanding research, teaching, and service.
Since her retirement, Dr. Mingst has worked on the revision of her co-authored book Essentials in International Relations 9th edition which was released September 2021. This revision includes an analysis of the first Russian invasion of Ukraine and the global economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, Dr. Mingst is enjoying leisure time with her family and looks forward to traveling the world with her husband, specifically Asia.