Winston-Salem State University, the historically Black educational institution in North Carolina, has announced a field of three finalists to be the university’s next provost. The three candidates will have all visited campus by the end of this week for public forums and interviews.
All three candidates are Black men.
Anthony Graham is dean of the College of Education at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. Dr. Graham joined the faculty at the university in 2006, was granted tenure in 2008, and was promoted to full professor of curriculum and instruction in 2013. He was named dean in 2015. Dr. Graham is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he majored in English. He holds a master’s degree in secondary English education and a Ph.D. in curriculum and teaching from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Lawrence T. Potter Jr. is a professor and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of La Verne in California. He joined the faculty at the University of La Verne in 2015. Previously, he was dean and professor of the College of Liberal Arts at Jackson State University in Mississippi. Earlier in his career, he was associate dean and chief diversity officer at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Dr. Potter is a magna cum laude graduate of Stillman College, a historically Black educational institution in Alabama, where he triple majored in English, philosophy, and religion. He holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in English literature and criticism from the University of Missouri.
John O. Omachonu is a professor of communication and the senior vice provost for academic affairs at Kennesaw State University in Georgia. From 2011 to 2015, Dr. Omachonu was vice provost for academic affairs, chief diversity officer, and professor of communication at Middle Tennessee State University. Earlier in his career, Professor Omachonu taught at William Paterson University in New Jersey. Dr. Omachonu is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, D.C., where he double majored in psychology and zoology. He holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in mass communication from Howard University.
