New Dean Appointments for Eight Women in Academia

Mei Zhao has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of the Brooks College of Health at the University of North Florida. She has held several academic leadership roles at the university, including chair of the department of health administration and director of the master of health administration degree program.

Dr. Zhao holds a master’s degree in biostatistics and health services research and policy from Shandong Medical University in Jinan, China, and a Ph.D. in health services organizations and research from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Emily Roper-Doten has been named dean of admissions for undergraduate programs at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. She has held several admissions and financial aid leadership roles at various institutions throughout Massachusetts. Most recently, she was vice president for undergraduate admissions and financial assistance at Clark University in Worcester.

Roper-Doten is a graduate of Colgate University in Hamilton, New York, where she double-majored in educational studies and theatre. She holds a master’s degree in higher education administration from Boston College.

Melissa Craft has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of the Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing at the University of Oklahoma. She currently serves as the Robert and Doris Klabzuba Professor of Nursing Science. Prior to her interim appointment, she was the college’s associate dean for clinical affairs, outreach, and practice innovation.

Dr. Craft received her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in nursing from the University of Oklahoma and her Ph.D. in nursing from Texas Women’s University.

Stephani Etheridge Woodson has been appointed vice president for enrollment services and dean of undergraduate studies at the University of Northern Colorado. She has spent the past nine years on the faculty at the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. While there, she served in various leadership roles, most recently as senior associate dean of students and academic programs.

Dr. Woodson earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in theatre from the University of Texas at Austin. She holds a Ph.D. in theatre from Arizona State University.

Sandra Smith has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of the School of Professional Studies at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Before joining the Ivy League institution in 2015, she gained significant experience in strategic consulting, focusing primarily on technology and services companies.

Smith received her bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and master’s degree in applied science from the University of Toronto in Canada. She holds an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania.

Keisha M. Pollack Porter has been named dean of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. A Johns Hopkins faulty member since 2006, she currently serves as the Bloomberg Centennial Chair and Professor in the department of health policy and management. She also directs the university’s Institute for Health and Social Policy.

Dr. Pollack Porter is a graduate of Tufts University in Massachusetts, where she majored in sociology. She holds a master of public health degree in chronic disease epidemiology from Yale University and a Ph.D. in health and public public from Johns Hopkins University.

Lisa Saltzman has been selected to serve as interim dean of graduate studies at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. She first joined the college’s faculty in 1997 and currently serves as the Emily Rauh Pulitzer ’55 Chair in Modern and Contemporary Art and director of graduate studies for the department of the history of art. Earlier in her tenure, she served as department chair and director of the Center for Visual Culture.

Dr. Saltzman is a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton University, where she double-majored in art and archaeology. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in fine arts from Harvard University.

Saskia L. van de Gevel has been named dean of the College of Natural Resources and Environment at Virginia Tech. She comes to her new role from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, where she has been serving as a professor and chair of the department of geography and planning. She previously served as the National Geographic Society’s geography steward for the state of North Carolina and as coordinator of the North Carolina Geographic Alliance.

Dr. van de Gevel received her bachelor’s degree in forest science from Pennsylvania State University, a master’s degree in forestry from Southern Illinois University, and Ph.D. in geography from the University of Tennessee.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related Articles

Latest News

Christine A. Hrycyna to Lead Academic Affairs at the University of California, San Diego

Dr. Hrycyna has served as dean of UC San Diego's School of Physical Sciences for the past three years. She is slated to become the university's next executive vice chancellor for academic affairs on January 1.

Jaclyn Albin Named President of the American College of Culinary Medicine

Dr. Albin is an associate professor of pediatrics and founding director of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center's culinary medicine program, an initiative that aims to empower people to have a thriving relationship with the food they eat.

Lisa Borzewski Promoted to Provost of St. Petersburg College’s Seminole Campus

Dr. Borzewski has served as the interim provost of the Seminole campus and Health Education Center of St. Petersburg College in Florida for the past year. An alumna of the college, she has worked for St. Petersburg since 1999.

C. Cybele Raver Will Be the Next President of the University of Michigan

Since 2021, Dr. Raver has been serving as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. She will begin her new duties at the University of Michigan on December 1.

Lisa Rhine Appointed President of Central Arizona College

Dr. Rhine comes to her new presidency with nearly four decades of leadership experience in higher education. Most recently, she was president and chief executive officer of Yavapai College in Prescott, Arizona.

Tenure-track Assistant Professor of Modern Chinese History

The Department of History at the University of Pennsylvania seeks a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Modern Chinese History to begin July 1, 2027. “Modern” is defined as 1895 to the present.

Assistant Professor of Political Science

The University of Chicago, Division of the Social Sciences, Department of Political Science invites applications for a tenure track position at the rank of assistant professor of American Politics for an initial 4 year renewable term.

Assistant Professor-Tenure System, Department of Economics

The Department of Economics at Michigan State University in East Lansing invites applications for a tenure-system Assistant Professor in microeconomic theory with an anticipated start date of August 16, 2027.

Professor in Plasma Physics

Princeton University is searching for a faculty member at the level of Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor in the Program in Plasma Physics of its Department of Astrophysical Sciences, to begin in fall 2027.

Research Assistant

The Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics at the University of Chicago invites applications for a full-time Research Associate for a three-year term starting in the 2026-2027 academic year.