Dr. Kirsten Lodge was named Hardin Professor for 2023 during Midwestern State University’s commencement ceremony on May 13. Lodge is a professor of English and humanities in the Prothro-Yeager College of Humanities & Social Sciences. Hardin Professor is the highest honor bestowed upon a faculty member at the university each year.

Lodge joined the MSU Texas faculty in 2011. She holds two Ph.D.s with distinction from Columbia University — one in Russian Language and Literature and the other in Czech Language and Literature. She also holds the Master of Art in History and Philosophy of Art and Architecture from the Central European University in Prague and the Bachelor of Art (summa cum laude) with double majors in Russian and Soviet Studies and Russian Language and Literature from Cornell University. 

She is fluent in Russian, Czech, and French, proficient in Ukrainian, German, and Spanish, and also knows some Italian. As a literary translator, her considerable research and scholarly activities focus on translations of significant works in Russian and Czech literature. Colleagues value her wealth of knowledge about humanities and experience with the world she brings to bear in every class she teaches.

The Hardin Foundation for Wichita County established the annual award in 1962 for a member of the MSU faculty whose teaching and research during the preceding 12 months has brought distinction to the faculty member and the institution. The award carries with it a stipend of $5,000. Lodge is the 63rd professor to receive the honor.

Annual Faculty Awards

Individual college faculty awards also were announced at commencement. These awards were decided by a committee of their peers within their respective colleges.