Joi Gabrielle Artis is the new campus minister and chaplain at Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina. For the past 14 years, she has taught kindergarten through third grade in several districts throughout South Carolina. In addition to her work in education, she has also held numerous leadership roles within the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Currently, she is the pastor of St. James AME Church in Pinewood, South Carolina.
Rev. Artis earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from South Carolina State University, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina, and a master of divinity degree from Dickerson Green Theological Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina.
Shannon Trapp has been named associate vice chancellor for administration and strategic operations at North Carolina A&T State University. Her appointment marks a return to the HBCU, where she served as assistant chief of staff from 2017 to 2021. More recently, Trapp was director of community partnerships and engagement for the Durham County government in North Carolina.
Trapp earned her bachelor’s degree from historically Black Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, and her master’s degree in higher education from Abilene Christian University in Texas.
April Thomas was recently named director of the Undergraduate Research Office at South Carolina State University. Thomas comes to her new role after nearly 15 years with the James E. Clyburn Scholarship and Research Foundation. Most recently, she was the foundation’s director of operations and community development. Thomas has also researched educational equity, digital access, and the needs of historically marginalized communities.
Thomas is a two-time alumna of South Carolina State University, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English and her master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling.
