Four Women Retiring From High-Level Positions at Major Universities

Teresa Phillips, director of athletics at Tennessee State University in Nashville, announced that she will retire in June 2020, after 17 years in the post. Earlier, she coached both the men’s and women’s basketball teams at the university.

Phillips was the first African American woman to enroll at Vanderbilt University. She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at Vanderbilt and went on to earn a master’s degree in education from Tennessee State University.

Jill D. Friedman, vice chancellor for public affairs at Washington University in St. Louis, will leave her position on December 31. Before coming to the university eight years ago, she served as a senior vice president and partner in the public affairs practice of Fleishman-Hillard at its world headquarters in St. Louis.

A native of St. Louis, Friedman earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Vermont in 1986 and an MBA from Washington University’s Olin Business School in 1999.

E. Royster Harper, vice president for student life at the University of Michigan, is leaving her post in January. She has served in this role for the past two decades. Earlier, she served as the senior associate vice president, dean of students, and dean of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts.

Dr. Harper holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Michigan. She earned a doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania.

Almeda Jacks has stepped down from her post as vice president of student affairs at Clemson University in South Carolina. She has served on the staff at the university for nearly 40 years, although she left for a five-year period to serve as a student affairs executive for Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York.

Dr. Jacks holds a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree, and a doctorate, all from Clemson University.