Four Women Selected to Lead Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives in Higher Education

Romona West has been appointed assistant dean for student success, inclusive excellence, and strategic initiatives in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. She previously served as director of diversity, equity, and inclusion for the Fulbright College. Earlier in her tenure with the University of Arkansas, she was the assistant director of graduate recruitment and outreach for the Graduate School and International Education.

West received her bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting and her juris doctorate from the University of Arkansas.

Rhea Roper Nedd has been named assistant vice president of equity, diversity, and inclusion at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She brings over a decade of experience in developing diversity programs to her new role. Most recently, she served as director of the Center for Student Diversity at Towson University in Maryland.

Dr. Roper Nedd is a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, where she majored in government and politics. She holds a master’s degree in political science and international relations from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and a Ph.D. in political science and international relations from Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Rassheedah “Eda” Watts has been selected to serve as interim vice chancellor for equity and inclusion for the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. She comes to her new role from North Hennepin Community College in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, where she most recently served as vice president of equity, inclusion, and culture. She previously spent three years as director of diversity, inclusion, and student success at Blackburn College in Illinois.

Dr. Watts holds a bachelor’s degree in broadcast and electronic communications from San Francisco State University, a master’s degree in higher education administration from Southern New Hampshire University, and a doctorate in leadership and professional practice from Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Janice Hall has been named head of the Office of Transformation – formerly the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging – in the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech. She first joined the Pamplin College staff in 2019 as the first director of diversity and inclusion. She previously led diversity initiatives in the business schools at Wake Forest University and the University of Tennessee.

Dr. Hall holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of William and Mary in Virginia, a master’s degree in management from Wake Forest University in North Carolina, and a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Tennessee.