Three African Americans Who Have Been Appointed Deans at Universities
Marla Love has been named the Robert W. and Elizabeth C. Staley Dean of Students at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Asquith S. “Sean” Armstrong has been named dean of University College at Washington University in St. Louis and Arlene J. Montgomery is the new interim dean of the School of Nursing at Hampton University in Virginia.
Olufunke Fontenot is the New Provost at Fort Valley State University in Georgia
Before coming to Fort Valley State University in 2019, Dr. Fontenot served as the interim regional vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of South Florida – St. Petersburg. Dr. Fontenot also served as associate provost and associate vice president for academic affairs, and interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at Albany State University in Georgia.
Linda Scott Was Named President-Elect of the American Academy of Nursing
Dr. Scott became the eighth dean of the School of Nursing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2016. Earlier she was associate dean for academic affairs, director of graduate studies, and urban health at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Nursing.
Notre Dame’s K. Matthew Dames Is the New Leader of the Association of Research...
Dr. Dames came to Notre Dame this fall after serving as Boston University Librarian since 2018. Earlier, Dr. Dames was associate university librarian for scholarly resources and services at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
Gloria Blackwell Is the New CEO of the American Association of University Women
Blackwell had been serving as the executive vice president and chief program officer for the association. For 17 years, she directed AAUW’s highly esteemed fellowships and grants program which has awarded more than $70 million in funding to women scholars and programs in the U.S. and overseas.
The First African American President of Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland
Dr. Daria Willis currently serves as president of Everett Community College in Washington. Earlier, Dr. Willis was the provost and senior vice president of academic affairs at Onondaga Community College of the State University of New York and dean of academic studies at Lee College in Baytown, Texas.
Reginald DesRoches Will Be the Eighth President of Rice University in Houston
The will of oil tycoon William Marsh Rice stipulated that only White students would be allowed to enroll at the university bearing his name. From its founding in 1912 to 1965, no Black student was permitted to enroll at Rice University. Next summer, the university will install its first Black president.
The Chair-Elect of the National Association of College Admission Counseling’s Board of Directors
Since 2018, Vern Granger has been director of undergraduate admissions in the Division of Enrollment Planning & Management at the University of Connecticut. In each of the undergraduate admissions cycles since his appointment, the university has attracted record numbers of students of color as part of the incoming classes.
Hettie Williams Will Be the Next Leader of the African American Intellectual History Society
Dr. Williams is an associate professor of African American history in the department of history and anthropology at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey. Her teaching and research interests include: African American intellectual history, gender in U.S. history, and race/ethnicity studies.
Crystal Williams Will Be the Eighteenth President of the Rhode Island School of Design
President-elect Williams has been serving as a professor of English and vice president and associate provost for community & inclusion at Boston University. She began her academic career at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. She later served as associate vice president for strategic initiatives at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.
Roberta Waite Appointed Dean of the Georgetown University School of Nursing
Dr. Waite is a professor of nursing and executive director of Drexel University’s Stephen and Sandra Sheller 11th Street Family Health Services – a nurse-managed community-based organization that provides comprehensive care to thousands of individuals each year.
Tonya Smith-Jackson to Serve as Provost at North Carolina A&T State University
Dr. Smith Jackson has worked for North Carolina A&T since 2013, most recently as senior vice provost for academic affairs. She originally joined A&T as a professor and chair of the department of industrial and systems engineering. Earlier in her career she taught at Virginia Tech.
Jermaine Williams Appointed President of Montgomery College in Maryland
Since 2019, Dr. Williams has been serving as president of Nassau Community College in Garden City, New York. Earlier, he was vice president for student affairs at North Shore Community College in Danvers, Massachusetts. Before that, he held various administrative posts at Northeastern Illinois University.
Colette Pierce Burnette Is Stepping Down as President of Huston-Tillotson University in Texas
Dr. Pierce Burnette was named president in 2015. She is the first woman to hold the position since the 1952 merger of Tillotson College and Samuel Huston College. She will pass the baton of leadership on June 30.
Miles College President Gets a Vote of Confidence and a Contract Extension
The board of trustees of Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, has voted to extend the contract of President Bobbie Knight through May 2024. Knight was originally selected to serve as interim president of the college beginning September 1, 2019. She was named permanent president of the college in March 2020.
Lena Walton to Serve as Provost at Alabama A&M University
Dr. Walton has served as dean of the College of Education, Humanities and Behavioral Sciences since 2017. Earlier, Dr. Walton served as assistant and associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of the District of Columbia. She served on the faculty there for 15 years.
Levy Brown Is the New Chief Academic Officer for North Carolina State Community Colleges
Dr. Levy Brown has held several leadership roles with Vance-Granville Community College in Henderson, North Carolina, including vice president of learning, student engagement and success; vice president of academic affairs, and vice president of student services.
Anthony Ponder Selected to Be the Next Provost at Sinclair Community College in Dayton,...
Dr. Ponder has been serving as dean of the Science, Mathematics & Engineering Division at the college. He first started working at the college in 1991 as an instructor in the mathematics department. He earned tenure in 1996 and was promoted to the rank of full professor in 2005.
Two African American Women Who Are Taking on New Duties as Deans
Amy Tillerson-Brown, a professor of history, is the new dean of the Mary Baldwin College for Women at Mary Baldwin University in Staunton, Virginia, and Chandrika Johnson has been appointed as the interim dean of the College of Education at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina.
Lonnie T. Brown Jr. Will Be the New Leader of the College of Law...
Lonnie Brown is currently the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor and holds the A. Gus Cleveland Distinguished Chair of Legal Ethics and Professionalism at the University of Georgia School of Law. He will begin his new duties on July 1.
Two African American Women Appointed to Dean Positions in Massachusetts
Gretchen Long, the Frederick Rudolph ’42 – Class of 1965 Professor of American Culture at Williams College in Williamstown, will serve as the next dean of the college and Margaret Vendryes has been appointed dean of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University in Medford.
Mark Melton to Serve as Provost at Saint Augustine’s University
Dr. Melton has been serving as a professor of biology and dean for the School of Sciences, Mathematics, and Allied Health at the university. During his tenure at the university, Dr. Melton has been chair of the department of biological and physical sciences and director of the honors program.
Four African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions
The four scholars appointed to dean positions are Ulysses Taylor at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, Marla Harris at Mitchell Community College in Statesville, North Carolina, Walter T. Tillman Jr. at Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Florida, and Stella Bridgeman at Pellissippi State Community College in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Livingstone College President Jimmy Jenkins Announces That He Will Retire on July 1
Dr. Jenkins has served as president of the historically Black college for the past 16 years. He is credited with saving the college from closure from its accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
Arizona State University Scholar Is the New Head of the National Endowment for the...
Maria Rosario Jackson is an Institute Professor in the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. Professor Jackson, who is of Mexican American and African American descent, also holds an appointment in the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions at Arizona State.
LaTonia Collins Smith Is the New President of Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis
Dr. Colllins Smith has been serving as interim president since last summer. Before being named interim president, Dr. Collins Smith had been serving as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the university. She has been on the staff at the university since 2010.
Three Black Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to University Dean Positions
Martine Kei Green-Rogers was appointed dean of The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago. Michael Abazinge was appointed dean of the School of the Environment at Florida A&M University and Pero G. Dagbovie was named associate provost for graduate and postdoctoral studies and dean of the Graduate School at Michigan State University.
Ruth Simmons Announces She Plans to Step Down as President of Prairie View A&M...
Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University in Texas, has announced that she plans to retire but is willing to continue serving in the role until her successor is named. Dr. Simmons came out of retirement in 2017 to lead the historically Black university.
Syracuse University’s Gwendolyn Pough to Lead the Rhetoric Society of America
Gwendolyn Pough, dean’s professor of the humanities and professor of women’s and gender studies in the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University in New York, will serve a six-year term as president-elect, president, and past-president, of the Rhetoric Society of America, beginning in July.
Hampton University’s Felicia Blow Elected Chair of the Public Relations Society of America
Dr. Blow joined the staff at Hampton University in 2017 as associate vice president for development. She had previously worked in manufacturing, waste management and environmental services, telecommunications, and for Paul D. Camp Community College and Tidewater Community College.
Frederick Community College in Maryland Has Chosen Annessa Cheek as Its Next President
Dr. Cheek has served as president of St. Cloud Technical and Community College in Minnesota since 2018. From 2014 to 2018, she was vice president of school and community partnerships at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio. She had been on the staff at that college since 2006.
Gregory Vincent Appointed President of Talladega College in Alabama
Dr. Vincent is the former president of Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York Previously, he was the W.K. Kellogg Professor of Community College Leadership, professor of law, and vice president for diversity and community engagement at the University of Texas at Austin.
Four Black Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions
The four Black scholars appointed to dean posts are C. Debra M. Furr-Holden at New York University, Charles W. Richardson, Jr. at Alabama A&M University, Kimberly R. Moffitt at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, and Richard L. Moss at the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College.
Almesha Campbell of Jackson State University Named Chair-Elect of AUTM
AUTM is a global nonprofit organization whose members support the commercialization of academic research. AUTM has its roots in the Society of University Patent Administrators from the 1970s. Its name was later changed to the Association of University Technology Managers, but now only AUTM is used.
Valerie Sheares Ashby Will Be the Next President of the University of Maryland Baltimore...
Since 2015, Dr. Ashby has been dean of the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. From 2003 to 2105, Dr. Ashby served on the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. There, she chaired the chemistry department from 2012 to 2015.
Wayne A.I. Frederick to Step Down as President of Howard University by June 2024
Dr. Frederick, who had been serving as provost, was named interim president of Howard University in 2013 and assumed the permanent position in 2014. He has spent 34 years at Howard as a student, faculty member, administrator, and president.
