Six Black Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to New Faculty Roles

Reginald Perry, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at the Florida A&M University-Florida State University College of Engineering, was given the added duties of interim associate provost for academic and faculty affairs at Florida A&M University. He has been serving as the associate dean for student affairs and curriculum in the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.

Dr. Perry holds a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree, and a Ph.D., all in electrical engineering and all from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Tiffany Morris was named director of nursing and appointed the Clara Adams Endowed Professor in the John R. and Kathy R. Hairston College of Health and Human Sciences at North Carolina A&T State University. She most recently served as associate professor and nursing department chair in the School of Health Sciences at Elon University in North Carolina.

Dr. Morris holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Virginia. She earned a master’s degree in nursing, a master’s degree in education, and a doctor of nursing practice degree from Grand Canyon University.

Derreck Williams was appointed assistant teaching professor of dance at the University of Southern Mississippi. William’s research interests lie within the intersection of gender and Black dance studies.

Williams holds a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance from the University of Southern Mississippi. He earned a master of fine arts degree in dance from the University of Alabama.

Aaron Kamugisha is the inaugural Ruth J. Simmons Professor of Africana Studies at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. He joined the Smith faculty in 2021 after teaching at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus for over a decade. Dr. Kamugisha is the author of Beyond Coloniality: Citizenship and Freedom in the Caribbean Intellectual Tradition (Indiana University Press, 2019).

Dr. Kamugisha holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of the West Indies. He received a Ph.D. in social and political thought from York University in Toronto.

Tonya Pinkins, a Tony-award-winning actress, author, and educator, will be the next Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre at Fordham College at Lincoln Center. She has been nominated for three Tony Awards, winning one in 1992 for Best Featured Actress in a Musical, Jelly’s Last Jam. Pinkins is the author of Get Over Yourself! How to Drop the Drama and Claim the Life You Deserve (Hachette Books, 2006).

Pinkins attended Carnegie Mellon University but left school to pursue her acting career. She later earned a bachelor’s degree in creative writing at Columbia College in Chicago.

Alford A. Young Jr. was named a University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor at the University of Michigan. He is the Edgar G. Epps Collegiate Professor of Sociology, professor of Afroamerican and African studies, and professor of public policy in the Ford School at the university. He is the author of From the Edge of the Ghetto: African Americans and the World of Work (Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, 2019).

Dr. Young is a graduate of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. He earned a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Chicago.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Get the JBHE Weekly Bulletin

Receive our weekly email newsletter delivered to your inbox

Latest News

Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers

Each week, JBHE will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.

Higher Education Gifts or Grants of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.

Alabama State University Approved to Offer Doctorate in Occupational Therapy

The new doctoral degree at Alabama State University will ensure its students receive up-to-date academic training, and allow the historically Black institution to maintain a competitive edge with other Alabama schools

Florida A&M University Receives $237 Million Gift But Some Observers Say “Show Me the Money”

The gift is nearly double the university's current endowment valued at $121 million, and one of the largest personal donations ever received by a historically Black college or university.

Featured Jobs