Five African Americans Appointed to New Administrative Posts in Higher Education

Carolyn L. Branton was named executive director of institutional advancement for Robert Morris University Illinois in Chicago. She had been serving as director of development for the Black Ensemble Theater in Chicago.

Branton is a graduate of Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, where she majored in communication. She holds a master’s degree in management from Columbia College in Chicago.

Renee Bostic is the new director of athletics and wellness at Notre Dame of Maryland University. She is the first African American to hold the post. Bostic was director of athletics and intramurals at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, New York.

Earlier in her career, Bostic was the head women’s basketball coach at West Virginia State University and Robert Morris University Illinois in Chicago.

John Eason was appointed director of athletics at Florida A&M University. He has been serving in the role on an interim basis since December. Earlier, he was the senior athletic director of internal operations at Alabama State University in Montgomery.

Dr. Eason is a graduate of Florida A&M, where he played on the football team. He played for one year in the National Football League and two years in the Canadian Football League.  He holds a master’s degree from Florida A&M University and a doctorate in educational administration from Florida State University.

Michael A. Harris is the new director of Learning Resources for Student Athletes at Boston College. The office provides academic support services including counseling, tutoring, advising for the college’s nearly 700 varsity athletes.

Before coming to Boston College, Harris was an associate athletic director and director of the football academic unit at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Earlier, Harris was assistant athletic director for academic services and career development at the University of Maryland.

Lorraine D. Acker is the new associate vice president for student affairs at Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina. She had been serving as the director of the Margaret Sloss Women’s Center at Iowa State University.

Dr. Acker is a graduate of the College at Brockport of the State University of New York System, where she majored in political science and African and Afro-American studies. She holds a master’s degree in college student personnel from Western Illinois University and an educational doctorate from Iowa State University.

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