Five Women Who Have Been Appointed Deans at Colleges and Universities

Stefanie A. Lindquist, Foundation Professor of Law and Political Science in the School of Global Politics and the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, has been appointed dean of the School of Law at Washington University in St. Louis, effective July 1. Professor Lindquist, who has been on the faculty at Arizona State since 2016, is a nationally recognized constitutional law and U.S. Supreme Court expert. Earlier in her career, she served as dean and Arch Professor at the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs.

Professor Lindquist earned her law degree at Temple University in Philadelphia. She holds a Ph.D., with an emphasis on American politics, public law, and public administration, from the University of South Carolina.

Kimberly Cavanagh was appointed dean of the Morosky College of Health Professions and Sciences at Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania. She has served as interim dean since July 2023 and has been on the university’s faculty since 2001.

Dr. Cavanagh earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Siena College in Loudonville, New York. She completed the master of physician assistant studies program with a specialization in cardiology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and holds a doctoral degree in health science from Nova Southeastern University.

Shalei Simms has been named dean of the School of Business at the State University of New York at Old Westbury. She had served as the acting dean since the summer of 2021. Prior to her work as dean, Dr. Simms served the university in a variety of roles, including as director of graduate programs for the School of Business, as a tenured faculty member within the management, marketing, and finance department, as vice-chair of the campus’ Faculty Senate and as interim assistant vice president of academic affairs.

Dr. Simms is a graduate of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. She earned a Ph.D. at Rutgers University in New Jersey.

Amy Fry is the new dean of the College of Nursing at Purdue University Northwest in Hammond, Indiana. She has been serving as interim dean since July 2023. Prior to coming to Purdue, Dr. Fry served as a clinical faculty member and associate dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences at Saint Xavier University in Chicago.

Dr. Fry is a graduate of Trinity Christian College in Chicago, where she majored in nursing. She holds a master’s degree in nursing from Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, and a Ph.D. in nursing science from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Mary Hatcher-Skeers was named vice president of academic affairs and dean of the faculty at Scripps College in Claremont, California, effective July 1. She has been a faculty member at Scripps and in the Keck Science Department for over 25 years. Her administrative experience includes serving as the inaugural associate dean of faculty for racial equity since January 2021.

Dr. Hatcher-Skeers is a graduate of the University of California, San Diego, where she majored in biochemistry and cell biology. She holds a master’s degree in chemistry from San Francisco State University and a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Washington.