Colleges and Universities Announce the Appointments of Six Black Administrators

Kwesi Craig C. Brookins has been selected to serve as associate provost for university outreach and engagement at Michigan State University, effective January 1, 2023. Dr. Brookins currently serves as vice provost for university outreach and engagement and director of the Center for Family and Community Engagement at North Carolina State University.

Dr. Brookins is a graduate of Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. He holds a master’s degree in psychology and a Ph.D. in ecological/community psychology from Michigan State University.

Jackie Taylor was appointed chief strategy officer and chief of staff at Southwest Tennessee Community College in Memphis. She served as associate vice president for retention and student success at the college from 2016 to 2021.

Dr. Taylor earned a bachelor’s degree in English, a master’s degree in education, and a doctorate in educational leadership with an emphasis in higher education administration from Union University in Jackson, Tennessee.

Joseph Ballard II was recently named director of the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation at the University of Michigan. He most recently served as the inaugural director of diversity, equity, and inclusion for campus life at Iowa State University.

Ballard holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Oklahoma State University and a master’s degree in adult and higher education administration from the University of Oklahoma.

Verna Orr has been promoted to chief of staff at Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina. She was special assistant for planning and institutional effectiveness at the college.

Dr. Orr earned a bachelor’s degree in music education, a master’s degree in education, and a doctorate in educational policy and administration, all from Howard University in Washington, D.C. She holds a Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Illinois.

Daniel Lumonya is the new associate dean for undergraduate studies at the School for International Training (SIT) in Brattleboro, Vermont. Dr. Lumonya taught at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, for 14 years before serving as academic director for undergraduate Uganda and Rwanda semester and summer programs between 2001 and 2015 at SIT, and as academic dean for SIT’s Africa portfolio from 2015 to 2019.

Dr. Lumonya completed a bachelor’s degree in social work and social administration and a master’s degree in social sector planning and management at Makerere University. He holds a Ph.D. in development sociology from Cornell University in 2019.

Kamesia M. House is the new associate vice president of strategic enrollment management and executive director of financial aid and scholarships at Delaware State University. She was the executive director of scholarships and financial aid at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina.

House holds a bachelor’s degree in public administration and a master of public administration degree from North Carolina Central University. She is currently working toward a doctorate in educational leadership at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.