Chancellor's Profile

Photo of Dr. Duane Kilty, ChancellorDr. Duane Kilty began his role as Chancellor for Taylor University Fort Wayne on Thursday, June 15, 2006.

Kilty was selected by Taylor University administration after a search involving over 40 candidates. He filled the Chancellor position that had been vacant since the retirement of Dr. Daryl Yost in May 2003.

Taylor president, Dr. Eugene Habecker, shared, "We are very pleased that through the Lord’s leading, Dr. Duane Kilty has accepted our invitation to be the Chancellor of our Taylor University Fort Wayne (TUFW) campus. I believe Duane brings outstanding preparation and leadership experiences to this task. Under his leadership, and working with the talented people of TUFW and the larger Fort Wayne community, I believe we will see solid progress in pursuit of the TUFW mission."

Kilty is no stranger to the Fort Wayne community. After graduating from IPFW in 1981, he worked five years for Peter Eckrich and Sons in the area of accounting. From 1986 to 1991 he served as Director of Financial Services at Huntington University. Kilty shares, "I love Fort Wayne and look forward to working and living in the community again. Taylor University Fort Wayne is poised to make a significant impact on its neighboring churches, businesses and residents."

From 1991 to 2004 he served as Chief Financial Officer at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. While at Asbury, he helped to rebuild the physical campus, started a vibrant online program, assisted with the transition from a midsized to a large seminary and was instrumental in opening a second campus in Orlando, Florida. From February 2004 to May 2005 he was the Undersecretary for Administrative & Fiscal Affairs for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. In this position, he was responsible for a $6.5 billion budget, 9600 employees, administration, human resources and information technology. From May 2005 until his coming to TUFW, Kilty was a full-time consultant, working with struggling Christian colleges, focusing on financial and strategic planning.

He holds a bachelor of science degree from Indiana University Fort Wayne, an M.B.A. from Ball State University, and a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Kentucky. During his career he has held memberships with various management institutes and has authored several articles including Managing for Results, The Moderating Role of Institutional Forces on Inertia and is currently working on an article entitled, Results: How Leadership Actions Determine Success or Failure.

Kilty and his wife, Joni, are the parents of three children: Sarah (25), Joel (24) and Seth (20). Seth is a student at TUFW majoring in business and intercultural studies with an urban focus.