President James P. Cousins
Dr. James Cousins
president@kwc.edu
270-852-3104
Barnard-Jones Administration Building
Dr. James Cousins was named the 36th president of Kentucky Wesleyan College in April 2024 and began his role on July 1, 2024. During his first year as president, Cousins steered Kentucky Wesleyan into a period of renewed momentum and focus. He oversaw the college’s level change and helped launch its first graduate program. He also led the creation of Forward Ever, Together (2025–2028), Wesleyan’s first comprehensive strategic plan in nearly a decade. His leadership has already brought significant financial progress, reducing the operating expenses while increasing revenue, improving governance, and establishing new community and external partnerships.
These accomplishments are built upon the foundation he established as provost and vice president of academic affairs, a role he held at Kentucky Wesleyan from 2021 until his appointment as president. As provost, Cousins spearheaded strategic initiatives that strengthened the College’s academic profile and student success. He designed and implemented a first-year student retention program that yielded substantial gains, reorganized online education to achieve record enrollment, oversaw the successful completion of the College’s SACSCOC fifth-year accreditation report, and developed key institutional partnerships that created expedited graduate and career pathways for Kentucky Wesleyan students.
Cousins has been recognized for many career accomplishments, highlighted by fellowships and awards, including serving as a scholar in residence at Transylvania University (Lexington, Ky.), an American Council on Education Fellowship and the University of Chicago’s Robert L. Platzman Memorial Fellowship.
An historian specializing in the history of the Early American Republic, Dr. Cousins has presented at dozens of national conferences and has published over 40 articles, essays, reviews and translations in popular journals such as The Journal of Southern History, The Historian, The Journal of American History, The Journal of Educational Biography, Ohio Valley History, The Register of the Kentucky Historical Association, The History Teacher, and others. Dr. Cousins has also published two books: “Horace Holley: Transylvania University and the Making of Liberal Education in the Early American Republic” (Kentucky, 2016) and a co-authored work titled “Collaboration and the Future of Education: Preserving the Right to Think and Teach Historically” (Routledge, 2016). His upcoming third book is a history of America’s college and university presidents in the early 19th century. Dr. Cousins was recently featured in the PBS documentary, “Under Pressure: Changes & Challenges In Higher Education.”
After beginning his career as a history and Latin teacher at Millersburg Military Institute in Millersburg, Ky., Dr. Cousins held teaching appointments at Kentucky State University, Berea College, Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Kentucky. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio State University and both an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky.
Dr. Cousins and his wife, Carrie, a native of Georgetown, Ky., have one son, James “JP.” Carrie is a successful entrepreneur who owns and operates a chain of coffee shops.