Michelle R. Johnston has been chosen to be the 22nd president and the second woman president of the University of Rio Grande and Rio Grande Community College in Ohio. The 138-year-old institution in south-central Ohio enrolls about 2,200 undergraduate students and 100 graduate students. Women make up 62 percent of the undergraduate student body.
Dr. Johnston was the senior vice president for administrative affairs at the University of Montevallo in Alabama. Earlier in her career, she held administrative posts at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Mississippi State University, and the University of Arkansas. She will take office at the University of Rio Grande on September 29.
Dr. Johnston is a graduate of the University of Alabama, where she majored in music. She holds a master’s degree in music from Louisiana State University and a doctorate in educational leadership from Mississippi State University.