Schallenkamp, who began her tenure as president at BHSU in 2006, has been instrumental in shaping the vision for the University. Under her leadership, BHSU has emerged with record breaking enrollment, has added several new undergraduate and graduate degree programs, and has substantially increased the amount of grant funding and scholarship donations. During her tenure, BHSU has completed a major renovation and addition to the Student Union and constructed a new Life Sciences Laboratory building.

With Schallenkamp’s guidance, BHSU is also expanding its offerings for adult learners in the Rapid City region. The University is taking the lead role with the University Center–Rapid City which provides a comprehensive site for all state university course offerings in South Dakota’s second largest city. Schallenkamp has also strengthened collaborations with businesses, industry, and government agencies to meet workforce needs and create experiential learning opportunities for students.

Prior to her appointment at BHSU, Schallenkamp served as president of Emporia State University, Kan., for nine years, was provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and was provost at Chadron State College, Neb. She has served on the board of the American Association of the Colleges for Teacher Education and has served as chairwoman of the President’s Council for NCAA Division II and the National Teachers Hall of Fame in addition to serving as a member of the Board of Directors for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the North Central Association and the Renaissance Group.

Dr. Schallenkamp holds three degrees in communication disorders: a B.S. from Northern State University, a master’s from the University of South Dakota, and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado.
She and her husband, Ken, have two daughters. Heather (Shad) Newbury is a high school English teacher in Kansas and Jenni (Danny) Simon is a faculty member at UNC-Greensboro. Heather and Shad have two children, Alyssa and Tyler. Jenni and Danny have two sons, Keenan and Reece.