Christian Goering, a professor of curriculum and instruction in the College of Education and Health Professions, was recently named a 2024 Alumni Fellow by Kansas State University.

Goering is one of 12 distinguished Kansas State alumni to be recognized as fellows in 2024. As part of the honor, he was invited to return to his alma mater to connect with current students and faculty and present a guest lecture.

"Being selected as an Alumni Fellow by Kansas State University is an incredibly humbling honor, one I'm in awe to receive," Goering said. "Honestly, just being in conversation with the other distinguished fellows stands out as some of my favorite time spent in Manhattan recently. I was honored to speak at a college function and in a college class in which I previously served as a graduate teaching assistant; getting to share the event with family members was a highlight as well."

According to a press release, Alumni Fellows are chosen by each college "based on their high levels of professional accomplishment and distinguished service in their respective careers." 

In the 40-year history of the award, only 344 alumni fellows have been recognized out of nearly 250,000 graduates of the university.

The university asks its Alumni Fellows to share a piece of advice for young alumni and mid-career professionals. Goering emphasized the key role that fun can play in career success and satisfaction.

"Find something you want to do and that you enjoy doing, and it will never feel like work," Goering shared. "Each day, I gauge my success with research or teaching by the metric of how much fun I get to have. And I do have fun almost every single day. Maybe some of that is my job itself, but some of it has to do with the way I approach each day - have fun doing what you're doing."

Goering earned two degrees in curriculum and instruction from Kansas State's College of Education, a master's in 2005 and a doctorate in 2007.

He joined the U of A in 2007 after spending time teaching high school English and leadership courses at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka, Kansas. Goering currently serves as the coordinator of the Secondary Education program in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and the director of the Northwest Arkansas Writing Project and the Center for Children and Youth.

Goering has published 90 articles or book chapters and five books. He previously served as the national chair of the English Language Arts Teacher Educators from 2018-2020 and has been awarded numerous accolades for excellence in teaching, research and leadership.