Jerri J. Kropp

Prof. Kropp joined Georgia Southern University in 1993 and retired in 2020.

— Biography from the 2021 Spring Commencement program —

Dr. Kropp earned her BA. degree in Psychology from West Georgia College (1976) and her master's (1970) and doctoral (1983) degrees in Child and Family Development from the University of Georgia. She began her 38-year career in higher education as an assistant professor at Wayne State University, and she joined the faculty at Georgia Southern in 1993. Throughout her career, Dr. Kropp was committed to the care and education of young children. She was director of the Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman University) Child Development Center from 1985-1992 and upon arriving at Georgia Southern, she served as the director of the Family Life Center (now the Child Development Center) from 1993-2006. As principle investigator on a U.S. Department of Education grant, she was instrumental in adding infant and toddler child care to the center. Her dedication to young children was recognized at the state level when she was appointed by Governor Zell Miller to serve on the Georgia Child Care Council (1995-2001). She was also appointed by Governor Nathan Deal to serve as the Twelfth Congressional District Representative for the Board of Early Care and Learning for two terms (2013-2019). In 1993, Dr. Kropp started the child life program at Georgia Southern, which is now an emphasis in the Child and Family Development degree. She became a Child Llfe Specialist in 2014. As an active member of the Association of Child Life Professionals, she gained a national reputation as a respected educator in the child life field. With a strong belief in the benefits of high-impact practices, Dr. Kropp incorporated service-learning, field trips, and workshops into her classes, and taught a writing-enhanced course for four years. She developed an Honors First-Year Experience class on animal-assisted therapy that she taught for 10 years. Dr. Kropp was commined to undergraduate research, having led seven honor theses as well as having numerous publications and presentations with undergraduate students. Dr. Kropp gained international recognition for her child development research, particularly on the use of animal assisted therapy. She had eight international conference presentations, most recently presenting in Marrakesh, Morocco, and Thessaloniki, Greece. Dr. Kropp was awarded $340,483 in grants during the course of her career at Georgia Southern. She received the Georgia Southern University Excellence in Service Award in 2010. In recognition of these and other meritorious contributions to the department, college, University and the profession, Dr. Jerri Jaudon Kropp is awarded the title of Associate Professor Emerita of Child and Family Development.*