Six Women Appointed to Dean Positions at Colleges and Universities

Melissa Sturge-Apple, an associate professor in the department of psychology at the University of Rochester, has been appointed dean of graduate studies in the arts, sciences, and engineering at the university. Dr. Sturge-Apple joined the faculty at the university in 2009 and was promoted to associate professor in 2015.

Dr. Sturge-Apple is a graduate of the University of Rochester, where she majored in psychology and economics. She holds a master’s degree from Harvard University and a second master’s degree and a Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

Ellen S. Goldey is the new dean of the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. She was the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of biology at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. She served on the Wofford College faculty for more than 20 years.

Dr. Goldey is a graduate of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. She earned a doctorate from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Twyla Cummings was promoted to dean of graduate education at the Rochester Institute of Technology. She was the senior associate dean for graduate studies and faculty research at the university. She has been on the faculty at RIT for 17 years.

Dr. Cummings holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in business and industrial management from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. She earned a Ph.D. in business management from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati.

Marcella Runell Hall was named vice president of student life and dean of students at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Before joining the staff at Mount Holyoke College, Dr. Hall held several administrative posts at New York University.

Dr. Hall is a graduate of Ramapo College in New Jersey and a master’s degree in higher education from New York University. She holds a doctorate in social justice education from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Kelsey C. Martin is the new dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. She has been serving as interim dean since 2015 and earlier was executive vice dean and associate vice chancellor. Dr. Martin joined the faculty at the medical school in 1999.

Dr. Martin is a graduate of Harvard University, where she majored in English. After a term in the Peace Corps, she earned a medical degree and a Ph.D. in molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale University.

Rebecca Crocker McMullen was appointed interim dean of the College of Education at Fort Valley State University in Georgia. She was a professor of teacher education and coordinator of special education programs at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville.

Dr. McMullen is a graduate of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, where she majored in special education. She holds a master’s degree from Augusta Regents University and a doctorate in teacher preparation and learning disabilities from Georgia State University.