Barbara Romzek

Associate Dean, Social and Behavioral Sciences

email: bromzek@ku.edu

Associate Dean Barbara S. Romzek (Ph. D. University of Texas at Austin) came to KU as an assistant professor in 1979. She has taught in KU’s nationally ranked Public Administration program since then, and served as chair of the department from 1988 to 1992. She was appointed Associate Dean of the College in 2000 and served as Interim Dean in 2005-2006. In addition to her work for the College, Romzek chaired the University's re-accreditation steering committee and serves as KU's liason to Fort Leavenworth.

At KU, Associate Dean Romzek teaches courses in public management, community leadership and human resources management. Dr. Romzek’s research focuses on public management with particular emphases on accountability and government reform. Her work has encompassed a variety of work settings — from complex federal agencies like NASA, Congress and the U.S. Air Force to state social service agencies, local governments and non profits. Her current research focuses on the institutional design, program implementation and accountability challenges associated with government contracting.

Associate Dean Romzek has conducted numerous professional development and management workshops for various federal, state and local governments and several international and national professional management associations and has served on governing boards for numerous national professional associations. Romzek is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, an organization chartered by the U.S. Congress and charged to provide advice on matters of governance to federal, state, local, and international governments. In recognition of the quality of her research, she has received the Mosher Award from the American Society for Public Administration and the Kaufman Award from the American Political Science Association.