KENNESAW, Ga. | Dec 11, 2018

Phaedra Corso will lead University’s expansion of research opportunities for faculty, students

Kennesaw State University has named Phaedra Corso as vice president for research, effective Feb. 4. Corso currently serves as the director of the Economic Evaluation Research Group in the College of Public Health and the associate director of the Owens Institute for Behavioral Research at the University of Georgia.

As vice president for research, Corso will serve as the chief research administrator and officer for Kennesaw State, with responsibilities tied to elevating research activities and productivity for the University. She will work to create a research support infrastructure to help facilitate faculty success, develop a University-wide research vision for KSU, work with college-level leaders to develop unit-level research strategies, and elevate research opportunities for Kennesaw State undergraduate and graduate students. Corso will report to KSU President Pamela Whitten.

“Phaedra Corso’s depth of experience makes her a phenomenal addition to Kennesaw State,” Whitten said. “Dr. Corso is renowned for her research in economic evaluation and policy analysis, and she will be a tremendous asset as KSU builds on our Carnegie classification as an R3 institution.”

In addition to her roles at the University of Georgia, Corso served in a number of leadership positions at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 15 years. She has become a leading expert on economic evaluation, resulting in numerous funded research projects, publications, presentations and lectures nationally and internationally. Over the past decade, Corso has received more than $5 million in funding from several federal agencies, foundations and contracts, with an additional $2 million for the operation and research activities of her research team.

Corso has published more than 80 peer-reviewed articles in prestigious journals and co-authored multiple books on economic evaluation methods applied to public health. She has received several university, national and international awards for her research scholarship, including a U.S. Fulbright Scholar award in 2015-16.

“It is my honor and great pleasure to serve the Kennesaw State community as vice president for research during this exciting time of growth,” Corso said. “My commitment to research advocacy and service to both faculty and students will allow me to guide the research enterprise at KSU into its next phase of development – to be the best R3 in the country.”

Corso earned a Ph.D. in Health Policy from Harvard University, and a Master’s in Public Administration in public finance and a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Georgia.

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.