BOONE, N.C. — Dr. Leigh Dunston, executive-in-residence in the Department of Finance, Banking and Insurance, housed in the Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University, has received the 2019 Academic Freedom and Faculty Governance Award from the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

Dunston has taught at Appalachian since 2002. He has served as a faculty senator and acted as a consultant for various local nonprofit organizations. Dunston has been an advocate for faculty governance throughout his career.

A recommender wrote, “Leigh was just as comfortable reaching out to Appalachian’s Board of Trustees as to our senate chair and other faculty members. He has been willing to stand up for academics not because of a personal financial interest in receiving a raise, but because he believes in the institution’s highest purpose.”

Before coming to Appalachian, Dunston served as a member of the Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees. He earned his J.D. at Georgetown University Law Center and received his B.S. in international relations from St. Joseph’s University. He has been named in “Best Lawyers in America” for 11 consecutive years.

Founded in 1915, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is a national organization of American college and university professors that has chapters on over 450 campuses. AAUP has helped to shape American higher education by developing the standards and procedures that maintain quality in education and academic freedom in the nation’s colleges and universities.

Additionally, AAUP defines fundamental professional values and standards for higher education, advances the rights of academics, particularly as those rights pertain to academic freedom and shared governance, and promotes the interests of higher education teaching and research. Prominent members have included John Dewey and Albert Einstein. Learn more at https://www.aaup.org.

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About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, cost-effective education. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.