Esther S. Lee Bearden, Ph.D. Dean of Graduate School E-mail: eslee@troy.edu

Dr. Esther S. Lee Bearden (formerly Esther Lee Yao) is a professor and the Dean of the Graduate School at Troy University, Montgomery Campus.  After earning her Ph.D. from Purdue University at the age of 26, Dr. Bearden taught at the University of Houston Clear Lake, Southern  Arkansas University, and DePauw University for a total of 21 years.  In addition, she was Deputy Director of the U.S. Department of Education, President of American China Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. 

Dr. Bearden was named Outstanding Young Woman of America in 1978, received the U.S. Presidential Achievement Award in 1982 and Fulbright Scholarship Award to India in 1987. She is the recipient of the 2001 Outstanding Alumna of National Taiwan Normal University and the 2003 Distinguished Education Alumni Award of Distinction of Purdue University. She has also been listed in several publications of Who's Who. She is currently serving on the Board of Examiners of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

Dr. Bearden is a prolific and dynamic bilingual columnist and speaker. Her eighth book was just released in March, 2003. In addition to writing eight books and over 50 published professional articles, she has received several research grants funded by federal agencies and private foundations. She has been a speaker at a countless number of civic, religious, and professional seminars and conferences both in the United States and in foreign countries, including a lecture trip to South Africa in 1989. Dr. Bearden has a broad teaching and research background.

In the community at large, she has been appointed at various times to more than 30 commissions, councils, and committees by the U.S. Congress, Presidents, and governors, including the presidential Fulbright Scholarship Board and Congressional Commission for the Study of International Migration and Cooperative Economic Development.

Dr. Bearden has two grown daughters. With her musical background (a concert pianist in her earlier years), Dr. Bearden still enjoys playing the piano occasionally. Her worldwide travels have enriched her personal as well as professional life.