HAYS, Kan. – Dr. Larry Gould, chair of Fort Hays State University’s Department of Political Science, recently received the Outstanding Educator Award from the alumni association of the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams.

Gould, a 1971 graduate of the college, has served FHSU as its provost, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, executive assistant to the president and as a professor of political science. He was also the founding director of what became FHSU’s Docking Institute for Public Affairs, where he is still a senior policy fellow.

Gould was the 1988 recipient of the FHSU Alumni Association's Pilot Award as outstanding faculty member of the year. The Hays Chamber of Commerce named him Most Valuable Citizen in 1990 and inducted him into the Chamber's Hall of Fame in 1996. Previously, Gould was Faculty Senate president.

In 2000, he was granted the Pacesetter Award from the National Academic Advising Association. In 2008, he was awarded the William Plater Award by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities for his work with the American Democracy Project. One of the few national awards for provosts, the Plater Award recognizes those chief academic officers who have advanced the civic mission of the campus. In 2015, Gould was named a Kansas Icon of Education.