Biographical Text
Professor Emeritus of Geology Frank Kenneth McKinney (April 13, 1943- ) was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and graduated from Ensley High School in 1961. He attended Birmingham-Southern College, in Birmingham, from 1961 to 1963 and Old Dominion College in Norfolk, Virginia, where he earned his B.S. degree in geology, from 1963 to 1964. McKinney attended the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill on a National Science Foundation Cooperative Graduate Fellowship (1964-66) and a National Defense Education Act Fellowship (1966-67). He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in geology in 1967 and 1970, respectively. McKinney joined the faculty at Appalachian State University in 1968 as an instructor in the Department of Geology. He earned the rank of assistant professor in 1970 and received tenure in 1972. McKinney was promoted to associate professor in 1973 and professor in 1976. In 1972, Dr. McKinney was offered a postdoctoral fellowship in the Smithsonian Institution's program on evolutionary and systematic biology. In 1976 and 1980, he served as a visiting scientist at the Field Museum of Natural History and was selected as a research associate there in 1980. He subsequently was selected as a research associate of the American Museum of Natural History (1991) and as an honorary research fellow of the Natural History Museum, London (1998). Additionally, he was chosen four times by the United States National Academy of Science to participate in exchange programs with the Soviet Union (1978), Czechoslovakia (1981 and 1983), and Yugoslavia (1987). He also served as a consultant for the Teacher Corps, instructing Ashe County, North Carolina, elementary school teachers in earth science. Professor McKinney participated in an off-campus scholarly assignment with the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Durham, England, in 1978. This allowed him to complete a survey of literature on fenestrate bryozoans and collect numerous British and Irish fossils for the Appalachian State laboratories. In addition to Appalachian State faculty research grants, Dr. McKinney received research grants almost continuously, beginning in 1976, from the Petroleum Research Fund and the National Science Foundation. He also was awarded a position as Fulbright scholar in the program of exchanges between the United States and the United Kingdom for the 1992-93 year, during which time he was attached to the University of Cambridge and to the Natural History Museum, London. He returned to University of Cambridge during the 2002-2003 academic year as a Visiting Overseas Scholar at St. John's College. Dr. McKinney's extensive list of publications includes: • McKinney, F.K. and J.B.C. Jackson. Bryozoa Evolution. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1989. • Jackson, J.B.C., S. Lidgard, and F. K McKinney, eds. Evolutionary Patterns. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001. • McKinney, F.K. and G. R. McGhee. "Evolution of erect helical colony form in the Bryozoa: phylogenetic, functional, and ecological factors." Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 80 (2003): 235-260. • McKinney, F.K. The Northern Adriatic Eco-system. New York: Columbia University Press, 2007. McKinney's service to the university included membership on the following committees: the Faculty Research Committee, University Self-Study Committee, the Committee on Campus-Wide and Public Programs, and the Departmental Chair Search Committee. He is a member of the Geological Society of America, the Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, the National Association of Geology Teachers, Sigma Xi, the Paleontological Association, the American Association of University Professors, the Linnean Society of London, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He also served as councilor for the International Bryozoology Association (1977-83) and the Paleontological Society (1980-81, 1992-95), and was president of the International Bryozoology Association (1998-01). Through his numerous publications, lectures, active participation in professional organizations, and energetic cooperation with colleagues, McKinney established his reputation as a leading paleobiologist and bryozoologist. For his efforts, he was nominated as North Carolina's Outstanding Scientist in 1984. In addition to his scholarly activities, Dr. McKinney was a recorder player in the Appalachian Early Music Ensemble and a tenor in the William Byrd Consort. He is married to Marjorie Jackson and the couple has four children: Michael Andrew (September 12, 1968-), Benjamin Locklear (March 12, 1970-), Rachel (August 9, 1971-), and Mariama (July 8, 1972-). McKinney retired from Appalachian State in June of 1998 and was awarded emeritus status by the Board of Trustees at that time. Sources: Appalachian State University files and long association. -Dr. Richard D. Howe
Comments