Carol Shanklin learned about the importance of caring for others at a young age. This seemingly ubiquitous theme has yet to subside. Today, it is stronger than ever.

The dean of the Graduate School credits her caring instinct to educators from her church, school and 4-H group. Those role models helped influence her to become an educator as well.

"They showed what it was like to be caring but giving and challenging so that I was growing as a person as well as learning," she said. "I think the role models that I had in my early career and then my parents who encouraged us to do the best we could regardless of whether we were in school or 4-H activities, those types of things that influenced wanting to be an educator today."

College

Shanklin entered the University of Tennessee at Martin, Tenn., to pursue a bachelor's degree in home economics education. After student teaching in a high school, Shanklin made the decision to enter graduate school at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. A positive experience as a teaching assistant and a good mentor facilitated her interest in furthering her education. While in the midst of her PhD courses, the seeds for her future career were planted.

"I worked with my major professor to learn about accreditation and her role as a program director for dietetics and so that reinforced my desire to combine at some point in my career, combine teaching and administration," she said.

Teaching

Upon completion of her Ph.D., Shanklin accepted a faculty position at Texas Tech University. At the school, she had the opportunity to mentor several graduate and Ph.D. students. Shanklin's excitement for mentoring graduate students was building.

She accepted a position at Texas Women's University where her roles began to increase working with undergraduate and graduate dietetics students.

"I again provided students a variety of learning experiences both in the classroom and in field trips and in practical experiences," she said. "Again wanting to make sure I was the best in the field I was in."

During her first few summers before acquiring more graduate students, Shanklin worked in industry to add value to the undergraduate education she was providing. As time progressed, Shanklin began balancing work as an administrator, mentor and graduate teacher. It was then that a revelation occurred and a subsequent opportunity changed her path.

"I knew I couldn't do a good job in all three," she said. "So when the colleagues at K-State in 1990 started calling and saying we have a professor position open, and asking if I would apply so I could just focus on graduate education ... I did that and was offered a professor position in the department of hospitality management and dietetics."

Since accepting the job at K-State, Shanklin's primary focus has been on graduate education and mentoring. In 2001, she was presented with the opportunity to devoting 20 percent of her time in the graduate school working with Graduate Student Services and the Graduate Student Council. Her administrative roles have been increasing ever since.

Administration

Four years ago, Shanklin was appointed associate dean of the graduate school. Her ascension continued to serving as interim dean until being selected as the dean of the Graduate School in January.

Growth in research and certificate programs has highlighted her time as dean thus far. Certificates like academic advising and personal financial planning have evolved into masters and Ph.D. programs respectively. Shanklin believes the programs can provide a "unique niche" for graduate students.

"That's an exciting thing because we can address the needs of professionals in the field as well as providing our current graduate students with some unique skill sets that they can document on their transcripts," she said.

Shanklin has overseen large-scale recruitment efforts that differ from those for undergraduate students. Attending and presenting at national and international conferences, presenting at regional graduate school fairs and honors conferences, a customized graduate brochure and campus visits to targeted universities are just some of the myriad of programs that go into graduate school recruitment.

Demonstrating the importance of research at the graduate-level, the school also sponsors a Summer Undergraduate Research Program. For nine weeks of the summer, 10-15 undergraduate students are brought in from across the country to do research with a faculty mentor. The students live in the residence halls and receive a stipend for their work. Seminars on applying for graduate school are also featured. At the end of the summer, the participants present a research paper. Acclimation is important throughout the process.

"The key thing we are trying to do there is trying to introduce them to K-State," Shanklin said. "But also letting them know what it's like to be a graduate student and conduct research under a faculty mentorship within their research team."

Because the graduate school has no faculty who directly report to Shanklin, the school has dealt with recent budget cuts differently.

"We are going to look at how we are going to transition to use technology more to address the getting the communication going versus having a hard copy of everything going out," she said.

Eliminating unnecessary travel as part of recruiting is also an item under scrutiny, she said.

Shanklin's emphasis on program administration also stretches to collaborative efforts with the Graduate Student Council. Professional development seminars and the K-State Research Forum are two of the joint efforts. The working relationship between the Graduate Student Council and Graduate School has been positive according to Kara Dillard, president of the Graduate Student Council and PhD student in sociology.