UNA’s Dr. Ken Kitts Included on AL.com’s Final Listing of Top 22 for 2022
Dec. 31, 2022
Michelle R. Eubanks , UNA, at meubanks@una.edu, 256.765.4392
FLORENCE, AL – Since 2020, AL.com, one of the state’s leading sources of news and information, has published its list of Alabamians “who made our state a better place in the previous year.” The outlet released the names of the 22 honorees for this year individually throughout the month of December. With the list now complete, University of North Alabama President Dr. Ken Kitts stands as the only higher education leader so recognized in 2022.
Dr. Kitts is included with national newsmakers, including Tim Cook, Apple CEO and Robertsdale native; Cadillac Williams, who took over as Auburn University’s interim head coach on Oct. 31; Katie Britt, the first woman elected to represent Alabama in the U.S. Senate; Roy Wood Jr., who grew up in Birmingham and on the short list to host “The Daily Show;” and Sen. Richard Shelby, who is retiring after a 51-year career in elected political office.
“It is an honor to be included in AL.com’s list of Alabamians who are making a difference for our state,” said Dr. Kitts. “My inclusion on the list stands as a testament to the rise of the University of North Alabama and as validation of the incredible work being done by our faculty, staff, and students.”
Dr. Kitts came to UNA as its 20th president in early 2015, and under his leadership, UNA has hit record enrollment with more than 10,000 students making the institution their first choice in higher education; the NCAA’s Board of Governors voted in August to approve the institution’s full membership in Division I; he established Project 208 to address long-standing funding equity issues at the state level; and the University exceeded all previous fundraising records at the end of FY22.
“Looking back on my eight years as president, I note with pride just how far we have come as an institution as well as how I and my family have made UNA and the Shoals our home,” he said. “Dena and I consider it a privilege to serve with others in this wonderful community. We look forward to continuing to celebrate the accomplishments of those around us as a means of building the UNA brand and promoting the University to even wider audiences.”
About The University of North Alabama
The University of North Alabama is an accredited, comprehensive regional state university offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs through the colleges of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering; the Sanders College of Business and Technology; Education and Human Sciences; and the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions. Occupying a 130-acre campus in a residential section of Florence, Alabama, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. UNA Athletics, a renowned collegiate athletics program with seven (7) Division II National Championships, is now a proud member of NCAA Division I as part of the Atlantic Sun and United Athletic conferences. The University of North Alabama is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate in the admission policy on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, disability, age, or national origin. For more: una.edu and una.edu/unaworks/.