Two African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to University Dean Positions
Dana A. Williams was named dean of the Graduate School at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and Leon Jones was named dean for medical education and professor of psychiatry at Georgetown’s School of Medicine in Washington, D.C.
North Carolina Central University Names Its Next Provost
David H. Jackson Jr. has been appointed provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at North Carolina Central University.
Asa J. Lee Has Been Appointed President of the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
Dr. Lee currently serves as vice president for campus administration, associate dean for community life, and director of African American studies at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. He will become president of the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary on June 7.
A Trio of Black Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions
Fortune Mhlanga was named the founding dean of the School of Applied Computational Sciences at Meharry Medical College in Nashville. Debra J. Barksdale will be the next dean of the School of Nursing at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Roger A. Fairfax, Jr. has been named dean of the College of Law at American University in Washington, D.C.
Morris Brown College in Atlanta Granted Accreditation Candidacy
In 2002, Morris Brown College lost its accreditation due to an unstable financial position. The college filed for and later re-emerged from bankruptcy. Enrollments slowed to a trickle. Now with the announcement that it is a candidate for accreditation, students at Morris Brown will now once again be eligible for federal financial aid programs including Pell grants.
The Next Chancellor of the Indianapolis Campus of Ivy Tech Community College
Dr. Lorenzo Esters currently serves as vice president for Advancement and Member Engagement with the Association of American Colleges and Universities, a higher education association representing more than 1,200 two- and four-year institutions located in 50 states, the District of Columbia, three U.S. territories, and 25 countries.
Howard University to Close Its Classics Department
Howard University in Washington, D.C. has announced that it will disband its department of classics. The department has been part of the university since its founding in 1867. It is the only department of classics at a historically Black college or university.
Former President of Disneyland to Lead the Business School at Santa Clara University
Grier has been serving as dean of the School of Business at Virginia Commonwealth University. He joined VCU in 2010 after a successful 29-year career with Walt Disney Company. He will become dean of the School of Business at Santa Clara University this coming summer.
Erika Cameron Will Be the Next Provost at Palo Alto University in California
Dr. Cameron comes to Palo Alto University from the University of San Diego where she is an associate professor in the School of Leadership and Education Sciences. She has served in progressive administrative and leadership capacities since 2009.
Lolita Buckner Inniss Will Be the Next Dean of the University of Colorado School...
Dr. Innis has been serving as senior associate dean for academic affairs and professor of law, University Distinguished Professor, and the inaugural Robert G. Storey Distinguished Faculty Fellow at the Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. She will begin her duties as dean on July 1.
Felicia Ganther Will Be the Fifth President of Bucks County Community College in Pennsylvania
Since 2012, Dr. Ganther has been serving as associate vice chancellor for student affairs at Maricopa Community Colleges in Arizona. Earlier she was the executive director of the College of Lake County in Grayslake, Illinois. She will become president of Bucks County Community College on July 1.
Marcus Jones to Lead Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana
Professor Jones served as executive vice president and chief operating officer for the University of Louisiana System for the past year. He was executive vice president for university and business affairs at Northwestern State University from 2017-2020. He has served on the faculty at the university since 1994.
The First African American Dean of the College of Law at Georgia State University
LaVonda N. Reed has been serving as associate provost for faculty affairs at Syracuse University. She joined the faculty there in 2006. Professor Reed's research and teaching are in the areas of wills and trusts, property, and communications regulatory law and policy.
Miriam Delphin-Rittmon to Lead the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Dr. Delphin-Rittmon is an associate professor adjunct of psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine. She also has served as director of cultural competence and health disparities research and consultation at Yale’s Program for Recovery and Community Health.
Two State Universities in the South Name African American Provosts
The University of Oklahoma announced the appointment of André-Denis Wright as senior vice president and provost for its flagship campus in Norman and Monica Terrell Leach was appointed provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina.
Hiram C. Powell Selected to Lead Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida
Most recently, Dr. Powell has served as dean of performing arts and communications at Bethune-Cookman University. During his time at the university, Dr. Powell has served in several leadership roles including interim provost and vice president of institutional advancement.
William Tate IV Will Be the First Black President of a University in the...
Dr. Tate has been serving as the Education Foundation Distinguished Professor, executive vice president for academic affairs, and provost at the University of South Carolina since July 2020. Professor Tate served as dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education at Washington University in St. Louis.
Renée T. White Appointed the Next Provost at The New School in New York...
Dr. White comes to The New School from Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, where she has served as provost and a professor of sociology since 2016. Previously she was dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Simmons University in Boston from 2011 to 2016.
Adrian Epps is the New Dean of the College of Education at Kennesaw State...
Prior to being named interim dean in May 2020, Dr. Epps was an associate dean in the university’s College of Science and Mathematics from 2007 to 2019. He also served as interim provost and vice president of academic affairs at Dalton State College from 2019 to 2020.
A Major Gift Aimed to Address the Huge Racial Gap in STEM Doctoral Programs
Johns Hopkins University and Bloomberg Philanthropies have announced the launch of a $150 million effort to directly address historic underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and math fields. Five partnering HBCUs will receive funding to build pathways toward doctoral degrees in STEM
The Next President of Colorado Northwestern Community College in Rangely
In her most recent role, Dr. Lisa Jones served as vice president of student development at the Cedar Valley campus of Dallas College, a Hispanic-serving and predominately Black institution in Lancaster, Texas. Earlier, Dr. Jones served as vice president of student affairs at Henry Ford College in Dearborn, Michigan.
A Quartet of African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions
The four African Americans who have been appointed to dean positions are Phylicia Rashad at Howard University, Eve De Rosa at Cornell University, Battinto Batts Jr. at Arizona State University, and Linda Thomas at James Madison University.
Mordecai Brownlee Will Be the Next President of the Community College of Aurora in...
Dr. Brownlee has been serving as vice president for student success at St. Philip's College in San Antonio, Texas. Earlier, he held positions at the University of Charleston in West Virginia, Blinn College District in Texas, and Houston Baptist University. Dr, Brownlee will assume his new duties on July 15.
The New Leader of NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising
Melinda Anderson currently serves as the interim associate vice chancellor for student success at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina. NACADA, with approximately 15,000 members in 35 countries, is housed in the College of Education at Kansas State University.
Grossmont College in California Names Denise Whisenhunt as Its Next President
Whisenhunt has been serving as vice president of student services at San Diego City College. She served as interim president of the college in 2016 and 2017. Whisenhunt has been on the staff at the college since 2001.
The Large Gap in African American Voting Rates Between the States
In the District of Columbia and Mississippi, more than 72 percent of all eligible Black adults cast ballots in the 2020 presidential election. In Mississippi and Tennessee, Blacks were more likely to vote than non-Hispanic Whites. Massachusetts and New York had the lowest Black voter participation rates in the United States.
Lisa Anderson-Levy Appointed Provost at Highly Rated Macalester College in Minnesota
Dr. Anderson-Levy joins Macalester from Beloit College in Wisconsin, where she spent the past 13 years as a professor of anthropology. At Beloit, Professor Anderson-Levy served as associate dean of academic affairs and as chair of the department of anthropology.
Brenda Thames Will Be the Next President of El Camino Community College in California
Dr. Thames has spent more than two decades working for community colleges throughout the state, in instruction, student services. and administration. Most recently she has been serving as president of the Coalinga campus of West Hills College.
University of Virginia’s School of Architecture Names Malo A. Hutson as Its Next Dean
Dr. Hutson is currently a tenured professor and director of the Urban Planning Ph.D. Program in the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation at Columbia University in New York City. He is also the director of the school’s Urban Community and Health Equity Lab.
Andrew Agwunobi Appointed to Lead the University of Connecticut
Dr. Agwunobi is a pediatrician by training and has been serving as CEO of University of Connecticut Health since 2015. He will continue in that role while serving as interim president of the university. The board of trustees stated that it is in no rush to start the search process.
Christine Holt Selected to Be the Next Chancellor of the University of Arkansas, Hope-Texarkana
Dr. Holt currently serves as chief of staff for the University of Missouri System. She previously served as associate provost at the University of Missouri at Columbia and dean of academic administration at Northern Virginia Community College.
A Trio of African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to University Dean Positions
Gene Andrew Jarrett was appointed dean of the faculty at Princeton University in New Jersey. Debra J. Barksdale will be the next dean of the School of Nursing at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Keith A. Alford will become dean of the University at Buffalo’s School of Social Work.
Three Universities Appoint Black Scholars to Provost Positions
Francine Conway will be chancellor-provost of the New Brunswick campus of Rutgers University in New Jersey. John D. Jones is the new provost and vice president of academic affairs at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, and Melissa L. Gilliam has been appointed executive vice president and provost at Ohio State University.
Lesia L. Crumpton-Young Selected as the Next President of Texas Southern University
Since 2019, Dr. Crumpton-Youung has served as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. She also was a tenured full professor inf the department of industrial and systems engineering in the Clarence M. Mitchell Jr. School of Engineering.
Linda Thompson Will Be the Twenty-First President of Westfield State University in Massachusetts
Dr. Thompson has served as dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Boston since 2017 and previously held a similar position at West Chester University in Pennsylvania. Earlier, she served as provost and vice-chancellor at historically Black North Carolina A&T State University and dean of nursing at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.
Three African American Women Appointed to Dean Posts at Colleges and Universities
Gwenda Richburg Greene is the founding dean of Graduate Studies, Continuing Education, and Integrative Learning at Voorhees College. Henrietta Williams Pichon was named interim dean College of Health, Education and Social Transformation at New Mexico State University, and Versie Johnson-Mallard was named dean of the College of Nursing at Kent State University.
