Barbara Ritter has been named dean of the John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation at the University of Toledo in Ohio. She comes to her new role from Jacksonville University in Florida, where she served as dean of the Davis College of Business and Technology. An expert on organizational behavior and management, she focuses her research on emergent leadership, implicit leadership theory, and human resource policies.
Dr. Ritter is a graduate of Grand Valley State University in Michigan, where she majored in psychology. She holds a master’s degree and a doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology from the University of Akron in Ohio.
Cora Bragg Thompson has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of the College of Education at Savannah State University in Georgia. With over 30 years of professional experience, she has served as an educator in both K-12 public schools and higher education settings. She has been with Savannah State since 2013, serving as a tenured professor and program coordinator.
Dr. Thompson received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Savannah State, a master’s degree in educational leadership from Troy University in Alabama, and a doctorate in organizational leadership from Nova Southeastern University in Florida.
Amelia Manning has been appointed dean of the School of Professional Advancement at Tulane University in New Orleans. She brings over two decades of higher education leadership experience to her new role. Previously, she was chief operating officer of Southern New Hampshire University.
Manning holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Saint Michael’s College in Vermont and a master’s degree in counseling education from the University of New Hampshire.
Amy Bronson has been named founding dean of the School of Physician Assistant Studies in the College of Health Science at Pepperdine University in California. She has previously served in several academic leadership roles, including dean of the master of physician assistant program at the Texas campus of West Coast University and assistant vice president for research and innovation at Colorado Mesa University.
Dr. Bronson holds a bachelor’s degree in speech, language, and hearing sciences and a master of medical science degree with physician assistant certification. She earned a doctorate in educational leadership from Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Kathy Phillips has been selected to serve as interim dean of undergraduate admissions at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. She has been a member of the Duke community for over three decades. She has been serving as associate dean of undergraduate admissions.
Phillips received her bachelor’s degree in English from Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania and her master’s degree from Duke.
Hillary Richardson has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of library services in the Fant Memorial Library at Mississippi University for Women. She first joined the university in 2017 as an associate professor and coordinator of undergraduate research and information literacy. Earlier this year, she was promoted to the rank of full professor.
Richardson holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, a master’s degree in English from the University of Mississippi, and a master of library and information science degree from the University of Southern Mississippi.