Dr. Thomas J. McPartland

Dr. Thomas McPartland became involved in his profession because he had a wealth of experience in philosophy, due to the readings and thinking during his undergraduate years. He first earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Santa Clara in 1967 and continued at the University of Washington to receive a Master of Arts in 1969, and later a PhD in electrical history in 1976. In his career spanning more than five decades, Dr. McPartland has served as an educator, writer and academic executive, with his work often supporting and exploring philosophical topics. In 1976, he joined the faculty at the University of Washington as an acting assistant professor. During this time, he lectured at Pacific Lutheran University. From 1981 to 1987, Dr. McPartland taught as an instructor at Bellevue Community College and then joined Seattle University for two years before filling an assistant professor role at Kentucky State University. He taught at KSU for the remainder of his career; becoming the acting dean of the Whitney Young School of Honors and Liberal Studies of the institution in 1993 and full professor in 1996. He directed the Whitney Young School of Honors and Liberal Studies from 2006 until his retirement in 2016.

In addition to these positions, Dr. McPartland served as the president of the Kentucky Honors Roundtable from 2006 to 2016 and of the Academy Senate at KSU from 2003 to 2004. Out of all his endeavors, Dr. McPartland considers the publication of his two books on Lonergan to be the highlights of his career. These books are “Lonergan and the Philosophy of Historical Existence” and “Lonergan and Historiography: The Epistemological Philosophy of History.” Though retired, Dr. McPartland looks forward to continuing his research, writing books, and contributing to journals. During his time with KSU, he was recognized as a Distinguished Professor.