Thomas McGovern

Thomas McGovern received a bachelor's degree in theology from Fordham University (1970) and a doctorate in counseling psychology from Southern Illinois University. He held faculty and administrative positions at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) before his appointment as professor of psychology and director of arts and sciences at ASU's West campus in 1990.

In 2003, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Education selected McGovern as Professor of the Year for Arizona. He is a fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) and a charter fellow of the Association for Psychological Sciences (APS). In 1992, the APA selected him as the prestigious G. Stanley Hall Lecturer for their centennial convention. He received university faculty awards at VCU and at ASU.

McGovern's contributions at ASU include co-founding the baccalaureate program in Integrative Studies (BIS). He is a former president of the campus's Academic Senate and of the Arizona Faculties Council, and served as faculty representative to the Arizona Board of Regents.

McGovern's "Virtues and Character Strengths: Reflections on Sustained Faculty Development" is an E-book available from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology. He co-authored a chapter, Psychologically Literate Citizens, in "Undergraduate Education in Psychology: A Blueprint for the Future of the Discipline," published by the APA after its National Conference in 2008.

McGovern's list of more than 50 publications includes the books "Memory's Stories: Interdisciplinary Readings of Multicultural Life Narratives and Handbook for Enhancing Undergraduate Education in Psychology" (editor). He has written or co-written numerous book chapters, (e.g., "Composing an academic life narrative," "Psychology curricula and the new liberal arts") and scholarly journal articles. His article, "Hard Time," a memoir about overcoming a rare neurological illness, was published by The Washington Post in their Science Weekly section.