Dr. Kenneth M. Klemow

Professor of Biology and GeoEnvironmental science, Dr. Kenneth Klemow, is involved with students in the classroom and through extensive field research. While most students know him as the professor for the spring-semester Principles of Modern Biology course, biology majors take one of his upper-level offerings. These offerings include Ecology, Field Botany, Medical Botany and Plant Diversity. Dr. Klemow has incorporated the talents of over fifty undergraduates into his research program, on projects ranging from wetland ecology and mapping to medicinal attributes of plants. He also serves as the curator and director of Wilkes’s Rosenthal Herbarium, and its Wetland and Restoration Ecology Laboratory.

Dr. Klemow has taken a leadership role in education and information-exchange initiatives with the Pennsylvania Biodiversity Partnership, the Ecological Society of America, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Science. He is a Certified Senior Ecologist and is listed in the Pennsylvania DEP Registry of Wetland Consultants and Professional Botanists. He is an active practitioner of science, being the owner of a private consulting company that conducts wetland delineations and other biological assessments.

Dr. Klemow received his B.S. in biology from the University of Miami. He later earned a M.S. and Ph.D. from the State University of New York’s College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse.

"I enjoy teaching at Wilkes because I have the opportunity to interact closely with highly motivated students. I especially like our truly supportive learning atmosphere in which students view their classmates as colleagues and not as competitors. Thus, students are focused on mastering the material, and do not have to worry about whether their neighbor is trying to sabotage their efforts. I also like the many opportunities to offer courses and research projects with faculty in other disciplines. Those collaborations really engage the students, and demonstrate that students and faculty together comprise a single group of active learners.

Although Wilkes students are highly diverse in many ways, the student body can be described as being both intelligent and hard working. Students are sincere, honest, and actively seek both personal and professional growth. Most of my students are individuals that are fun to be with, yet have the maturity to know that success comes through dedication to academic excellence."