Profile

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Karen Gerlach

Adjunct Professorial Lecturer
School of Education, Teaching and Health

  • Additional Positions at AU

    Adjunct Faculty, College of Arts and Sciences: School of Education, Teaching and Health
  • As Director of Student Activities, Dr. Karen Gerlach provides leadership and administrative guidance on a wide range of student group activities and programs which are supportive of the University mission and create a link between the academic and co-curricular experience. Dr. Gerlach has worked in Student Activities at American University since August of 1996; as a coordinator, assistant director and for the past 9 years as Director. She previously worked as a Resident Director and a Financial Aid Counselor at Centenary College in New Jersey. Karen has a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership and her Ph.D. in Education. Dr. Gerlach is also an adjunct Faculty member in the School of Education, Teaching and Health in the College of Arts and Sciences at American where she teaches graduate level courses on Legal Issues in Education, Education and Public Policy, Foundations of Education and Urban Education.

  • Degrees

    Ph.D., Education, American University; Master of Arts, Educational Leadership, American University; Bachelor of Science, Accounting, Wilkes University

  • OFFICE

  • Student Activities
  • Mary Graydon - 271
  • Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

  • CONTACT INFO

  • (202) 885-3399
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  • FOR THE MEDIA

  • To request an interview for a
    news story, call AU Communications
    at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Partnerships & Affiliations

Scholarly, Creative & Professional Activities

Research Interests

  •  Exploring the fundamental issues relative to the practice of education and widening opportunities for college access 
  • Examining the impact of student engagement on African American students attending predominately white universities
  • Investigating the unique and delicate relationship between American Education and United States Law

Selected Publications

African American Student Engagement in Campus Affinity Organizations: An Exploratory Study of Impact (Dissertation successfully defended, March 2008)

Honors, Awards, and Fellowships

2010 Recipient of the Patsy Morley Outstanding Programmer Award from the National Association of Campus Activities.

Professional Presentations

Presenter, Robyn A. Mathias Student Research Conference, American University, March 31, 2007.  Session title: The Complexities of Race and Class