Office of the President

Joel D. Shrock is the Interim President for Graceland University. He served as the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty at Graceland University for two years.

He formerly served as Provost and Dean of the School of Humanities and Behavioral Science at Anderson University, Indiana. He completed the Council for Independent College’s Senior Leadership Academy in 2017. Dr. Shrock served as a full-time faculty member for seventeen years and holds the rank of Emeriti Professor of History from Anderson University.

Shrock earned his PhD in 1996 from Miami University in United States History with fields in cultural, gender, and world history. He earned a position in the Malone Fellows Program in 2009 to study Middle Eastern culture, politics, and history in Oman and the United Arab Emirates. He has published various articles and the book The Gilded Age: American Popular Culture through History on the evolution of American culture near the end of the 20th century that marked the beginnings of modern America.

Beyond the Graceland University campuses, Shrock has worked on two Teaching American History Grant Projects, served as a past president of the Indiana Association of Historians, and is a peer reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission.

Growing up outside of Albion/Indiana near Skinner Lake, Shrock helped out on his grandparents’ farm. His connection to nature carries over to his hobbies: he enjoys canoeing, hiking and fishing, but also sitting down with a good book or movie. He and his wife Kelly Kirby Shrock have three sons – Owen, JD and Brenton – and a canine companion named Pongo.