University community mourns death of longtime employee Kevin Teel

LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas community is mourning the death of Kevin Teel, a longtime employee on the Lawrence campus. Teel, 52, died Nov. 15.

“I join the KU community in mourning the passing of Kevin Teel,” Chancellor Douglas A. Girod said. “We send our sincere condolences to his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”

Teel joined the university in 2006 as an accountant in the Bureau of Child Research, now the Life Span Institute. In 2014, Teel became a grant specialist in the Behavioral & Social Research Shared Service Center/Educational, Social & Biobehavioral Shared Service Center.

Then in 2015 he was promoted to business manager in the KU Center for Research. Karen Schaller, assistant director for cash control and audit at KUCR, said Teel had a great sense of humor and always kept everyone smiling and laughing. 

“Kevin’s customer services skills were off the charts, and he was always available to help everyone who needed assistance,” Schaller said. “He never wanted any researcher to be inconvenienced due to a p-card issue or delays to their Greenphire participant studies.”

Gina Craig, chief financial officer for KUCR, said, "Kevin was a kind person and generous with his support to the university, his team and colleagues and helping to advance the research mission of the university. Our thoughts are with his family and friends."

Funeral services were Nov. 21 in Lawrence.