Tag: Northwestern University
Seven Black Leaders Appointed to Administrative Roles in Higher Education
Here is this week’s roundup of African Americans who have been appointed to new administrative positions at colleges and universities throughout the United States. If you have news for our appointments section, please email the information to contact@jbhe.com.
Anita Thomas Resigns as President of North Central College
Anita Thomas has resigned as president of North Central College in Illinois after one year in the position. When she assumed her presidency in July 2023, she became the first-ever woman and person of color to lead the college.
Five Black Leaders Appointed to Administrative Positions in Higher Education
Here is this week’s roundup of African Americans who have been appointed to new administrative positions at colleges and universities throughout the United States. If you have news for our appointments section, please email the information to contact@jbhe.com.
Study Finds Scientists With African Names are Less Likely to Be Featured in News Stories
The study found scientists with African-sounding names are 15 percent less likely to be quoted by news outlets than their peers with Anglo-sounding names.
University of Illinois Professor Ruby Mendenhall Named Poet Laureate
Dr. Mendenhall currently serves as the Kathryn Lee Baynes Dallenbach Professor in Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where she teaches sociology, African American studies, and urban and regional planning.
New Study Finds Children of Color in the United States Receive Inferior Health Care
The study compiled data from recent research on children's health care and found many disparities between the quality in care received by children of color compare to White children.
The Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University Names Bernard Banks as Its New Director
Dr. Banks comes to Rice from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where he has been serving as associate dean for leadership development and inclusion and clinical professor of management and organizations. Earlier, he was chair of the department of behavioral sciences and leadership at the U.S. Military Academy.
Sherwin K. Bryant to Lead the Center for African and African American Studies at Rice University
Dr. Bryant currently serves as an associate professor of Black studies and history at Northwestern University. He is the former director of Northwestern’s Center for African American History.
A Quartet of Black Scholars Who Are Taking on New Duties
The four Black scholars in new roles are Fred D. Archer, III at the University at Buffalo, Jennifer Joe in the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech, Mesmin Destin at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and Stephanie Harris at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey.
Study Finds that Where You Live Determines How Long You Live
A new study by researchers at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago finds that Black residents living in highly segregated neighborhoods have life expectancies four years shorter on average than residents living in less segregated predominantly White neighborhoods.
Five African Americans Who Have Been Appointed Deans at Universities
Newly appointed to dean positions are Monika Williams Shealey at Temple University in Philadelphia, Kenyatta R. Gilbert at Howard University in Washington, D.C., Jonathan Bailey Holland at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, Sharonda Ragland at Virginia Union University, and Twinette Johnson at the University of the District of Columbia.
Northwestern University Is Changing the Name of Its Department of African American Studies
The department is seeking to better reflect the breadth of its scholarship and teaching, according to the faculty’s formal name change proposal. The term “African American studies” is often interpreted as being specific to the United States, while the department’s actual work is broader.
Anita Thomas Will Be the First African American President of North Central College in Illinois
Dr. Thomas is currently the executive vice president and provost at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Prior to arriving at St. Catherine University in 2019, she was the founding dean of the College of Applied Behavioral Sciences at the University of Indianapolis. Earlier in her career, Dr. Thomas taught counseling psychology and school counseling at Loyola University Chicago.
Anita Thomas Will Be the First African American President of North Central College in Illinois
Dr. Thomas is currently the executive vice president and provost at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Prior to arriving at St. Catherine University in 2019, she was the founding dean of the College of Applied Behavioral Sciences at the University of Indianapolis. Earlier in her career, Dr. Thomas taught counseling psychology and school counseling at Loyola University Chicago.
Higher Education Grants or Gifts 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.
Marcus Cox Has Been Appointed to a Dean Position at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina
Prior to coming to Fayetteville State University, Dr. Cox was a fellow at the Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans. Additionally, he has served as associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana.
Sarah Willie-LeBreton Will Be the Next President of Smith College in Massachusetts
Dr. Willie-LeBreton currently serves as provost and dean of the faculty at Swarthmore College, where she has taught since 1997. Earlier, she served on the faculty at Colby College in Maine and Bard College in New York. She will become president of Smith College on July 1, 2023.
Why HBCU Medical Schools May Be Better for Aspiring Black Physicians
A new study by researchers at Harvard Medical School, the University of Central Arkansas, and Northwestern University, finds that Black medical students attending historically Black medical schools report a greater sense of belonging and greater confidence in their scholastic abilities than those in predominantly White medical schools.
In Memoriam: James E. Turner, 1940-2022
Professor Turner served as director of the Africana Studies and Research Center at Cornell University from 1969 to 1986 and returned for a five-year term from 1996 to 2001.
Northwestern Faculty Seek to Change the Name of African American Studies Department
The department of African American studies at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, has voted unanimously to rename the department to Black studies. The process of officially renaming the department could take as long as a year.
E. Patrick Johnson Has Received the Frederick Douglass Medal From the University of Rochester
The Frederick Douglass Medal is a joint initiative of the Office of the President and the Frederick Douglass Institute established in 2008 at the University of Rochester to honor individuals of outstanding achievement whose scholarship and community engagement honor the legacy of Frederick Douglass. Dr. Johnson teaches at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Rodney Priestley Will Be the Next Dean of the Graduate School at Princeton University
Dr. Priestley joined the Princeton faculty as an assistant professor in 2009 after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles in Paris. He became an associate professor in 2015 and a full professor in 2019.
E. Patrick Johnson Wins the National Communication Association’s Highest Honor
E. Patrick Johnson, dean of the School of Communication and the Annenberg University Professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, recently received the Distinguished Scholar Award from the National Communication Association. He has taught at Northwestern University for more than two decades.
Age, Race, and Early-Life Disadvantage Among College-Educated Mothers Impacts Birth Weights
According to a new study by researchers at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, Black infants experience disproportionately high risks of low birth weight compared with non-Hispanic White infants, particularly among mothers with high educational attainment and greater socioeconomic advantage.
In Memoriam: Valerie Jean Boyd, 1963-2022
Valerie Boyd was an award-winning author and served as the Charlayne Hunter-Gault Distinguished Writer in Residence and director of the master of fine arts in narrative nonfiction program at the University of Georgia.
Three African American Women Appointed to University Administrative Positions
Debra Bright has been named associate vice president for student affairs at Howard University. Lorraine Goffe was appointed chief human resource officer at Northwestern University and Marquita Armstead was named executive associate athletic director at the University of Nebraska.
University of Pennsylvania’s Elijah Anderson Wins the 2021 Stockholm Prize in Criminology
The Stockholm Prize in Criminology is an international prize established under the aegis of the Swedish Ministry of Justice. First awarded in 2006, the prize recognizes outstanding achievements in criminological research or the application of research results to reduce crime and advance human rights.
In Memoriam: Charles Wade Mills, 1951-2021
Since 2016, Charles W. Mills was the Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Earlier, he served as the John Evans Professor of Moral and Intellectual Philosophy at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
In Memoriam: Ulysses S. Doss, 1933 to 2021
In 1968 Dr. Doss founded the Black studies program at the University of Montana. At the time, it was only the second Black studies program west of the Mississippi River, according to the university.
New Administrative Duties for Four African Americans in Higher Education
Taking on new administrative duties are Derrick Gragg at Northwestern University in Evanston Illinois, Virginia McMath at Parkland College in Illinois, Rudolph Ellis at Grambling State University in Louisiana, and Chris Robinson at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
In Memoriam: Dollye Mary Emily Robinson, 1927-2020
Robinson began her career at Jackson State University in Mississippi in 1952 as the assistant band director and instructor of music. After a 60-year career at the university, she was named dean emerita in 2012.
Two African American Women Who Have Been Appointed to Endowed Professorships
Robin R. Means Coleman was named the inaugural Ida B. Wells and Ferdinand Barnett Professor in the School of Communication at Northwestern University and Whitney Pirtle was named to a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Chair at the University of California, Merced.
Six African Americans Named to Diversity Positions at Colleges and Universities
The six African Americans named to diversity posts are Tiffany Hayden at the University of Kentucky, Anthony DiNicola at the University of Arkansas, Robin R. Means Coleman at Northwestern University, Jasmine A. Lee at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, Andreá Williams at Ohio State University, and Yolanda Caldwell at the College of St. Rose in Albany, New York.
Northwestern University’s Carol D. Lee Selected to Lead the National Academy of Education
Dr. Lee served as Edwina S. Tarry Professor of Education and Social Policy and as a professor of African American studies at Northwestern University. She became professor emerita in 2019. Professor Lee will serve a four-year term as president of the National Academy of Education beginning in November 2021.
Jeanne Craig Sinkford Wins the Highest Award Given by the American College of Dentists
Dr. Sinkford was appointed associate dean at the Howard University College of Dentistry in 1967. In 1975, she broke the gender barrier when she was appointed dean of Howard University College of Dentistry, the first woman to lead a U.S. dental school. She served as dean from 1975 to 1991.
Parneshia Jones Appointed Director of Northwestern University Press
An Evanston native and a published poet, Jones joined the Northwestern University Press in 2003 as marketing assistant and served in several progressively more responsible positions. She will be only the second Black woman to lead a university press in the United States.
