Tagged: University of Iowa

In Memoriam: Mary Belle McDonald, 1938-2025

A scholar of nutrition and dietetics, McDonald served as a longtime faculty member with the University of Missouri. She was the institution's third-ever African American professor.

Study Discovers Link Between Midlife Exposure to Racism and Risk of Dementia

Scholars at the University of Georgia, the University of Iowa, and Wake Forest University, have found an increased exposure to racial discrimination during midlife results in an increased risk for Alzheimer's disease and dementia later in life.

Austin Agho to Transition from Old Dominion University Provost to Chief Integration Officer

Dr. Agho will transition to the role of senior advisor to the president and chief integration officer for Old Dominion University on July 1. Over the next two years, he will oversee the university's merger with Eastern Virginia Medical School.

Diverse Classrooms in College STEM Courses Improve Learning Outcomes for All Students

Students achieve better grades in college science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) courses when those classrooms have higher numbers of underrepresented racial-minority and first-generation college students, according to new research published by the American Educational Research Association.

College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University Has Named Tonya Peeples as Dean

Dr. Peeples joined Penn State in 2018 as a professor of chemical engineering and as the inaugural associate dean for equity and inclusion in the College of Engineering. Before coming to Penn State, Dr. Peeples was a professor of chemical and biochemical engineering at the College of Engineering of the University of Iowa.

Cynthia Nance Once Again Named Dean of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville School of Law

Professor Nance first joined the University of Arkansas School of Law faculty in 1994 as an assistant professor and served as the dean from 2006 to 2011. She then returned to the classroom as the Nathan G. Gordon Professor of Law in 2012.

The Library of Congress Recognizes Rita Dove for Lifetime Achievement in Poetry

Rita Dove, the Henry Hoyns Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Virginia, received the 2022 Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry for lifetime achievement from the Library of Congress. Professor Dove has published 11 collections of poetry. She served as Poet Laureate of the United States from 1993 to 1995 and won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1987.

Harriet B. Nembhard Will Be the Next President of Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, California

A nationally respected leader in the field of industrial and operations engineering, Dr.Nembhard currently serves as dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Iowa. Before coming to Iowa in 2020, Dr. Nembhard was the Eric R. Smith Professor of Engineering and head of the School of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering at Oregon State University.

Student and Faculty Diversity Reduces the Black-White College Graduation Rate Gap

A study led by Nicholas A. Bowman, Mary Louise Petersen Chair in Higher Education at the University of Iowa, finds that college graduation gaps between Black and White students tend to shrink when there are more students of color or faculty of color on campus.

New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for Five African Americans

Taking on new administration positions are Dakota Doman at Texas Southern University in Houston, Reneé Watson at Central Michigan University, Chanelle Reese at the University of Iowa, Romy Riddick at Princeton University in New Jersey, and Vincent Champion at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

In Memoriam: Harold Burnell Brockington, 1922-2022

In 1964, Dr. Brockington was hired as an associate professor and head of the department of music at Delaware State University. He went on to become the longest serving chair of the department of music in the history of Delaware State University – 26 years from 1964 to 1990.

New Administrative Appointments for Six African Americans in Higher Education

Taking on new administrative roles are Germaine Gross at Grinnell College in Iowa, James M. DuBose, Jr. at Elizabeth City State University, Andre Perry at the University of Iowa, Aisha Jackson at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Deacue Fields at the University of Arkansas, and Warren Perry at Howard University.

Four African Americans Honored With Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards

The Cleveland Foundation's annual Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards are the only national juried prize for literature that confronts racism and explores diversity. Four of the winners this year are African Americans who have academic ties.

Tuskegee University Appoints S. Keith Hargrove as Its Next Provost

Dr. Hargrove has been serving as dean of the College of Engineering at Tennessee State University. He previously served as chairperson of the department of industrial, manufacturing & information engineering in the Clarence Mitchell, Jr. School of Engineering at Morgan State University in Baltimore.

Johnson County in Iowa Isn’t Changing Its Name, Just Who It Is Honoring

Johnson County in Iowa was originally named for Richard Mentor Johnson, a slaveowner who served as vice president under President Martin Van Buren. Henceforth, Johnson County will honor Lulu Merle Johnson, who was the first African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in Iowa and taught at several historically Black colleges and universities.

Kiki Petrosino of the University of Virginia Wins the 2021 Rilke Prize

Professor Petrosino was honored for her poetry collection that weaves together a variety of poetic forms – villanelles, a heroic crown and erasure – to explore her Black heritage and larger societal issues with the legacy of slavery and race relations in America.

Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, Appoints its First Black President

In 2016, Dr. Hemphill became the seventh president of Radford University in Virginia. Earlier, he served from 2012 to 2016 as the 10th president of West Virginia State University, a historically Black educational institution near Charleston.

Four African American Appointed to Diversity Roles at Colleges and Universities

The four African Americans appointed to diversity positions are Jarvis Marlow-McCowin at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Eric Reed at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Elizabeth Tovar at the University of Iowa, and Brian Harper at the New York Institute of Technology.

Lena Hill Will Be the Next Provost at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia

Dr. Hill currently serves as dean of the College and professor of English and Africana studies at the university. Prior to joining Washington and Lee, Hill was associate vice president and interim chief diversity officer at the University of Iowa, where she was an associate professor of English and African American studies.

University of Chicago’s Eve Ewing Honored at the Iowa City Book Festival

Eve Ewing is an assistant professor at the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. The Paul Engle Prize honors writers who demonstrate a pioneering spirit in the world of literature and a commitment to engaging with the issues of the day.
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