Deborah F. Rutter has been appointed vice provost for the arts at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Her background includes nearly five decades of experience as a nonprofit executive. Since 2014, she has served as the first woman president of the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
Rutter is a graduate of Stanford University in California, where she double-majored in music and German. She holds an MBA from the University of Southern California.
Jamie Allen has been appointed senior vice president and chief legal officer for Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. She will also serve as corporate secretary and provide legal oversight for Morehouse Healthcare. Prior to her new role, she was vice president of legal services for BJC Health System, the largest nonprofit health system in Missouri.
Allen is a graduate of Grambling State University in Louisiana, where she majored in economics. She holds a master of laws degree in health law from Loyola University Chicago and a juris doctorate from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.
Candice Lewis has been appointed vice president of learning and workforce development at Greenville Technical College in South Carolina. For the past decade, she has served as dean of the college’s School of Health Sciences. Earlier in her career, she was a laboratory technician in plant molecular genetics research at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.
Dr. Lewis is an alumna of Greenville Technical College, where she earned an associate’s degree in radiologic technology. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and secondary teaching from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, a master’s degree in radiologic technology from Midwestern State University in Texas, and a doctorate in higher education executive leadership from Wingate University in North Carolina.
Faith Renee’ Spells has been named associate vice president for enrollment services at Talladega College in Alabama. With over 20 years of higher education experience, she most recently served as director of institutional effectiveness at Denmark Technical College in South Carolina. She has also served in administrative roles at Claflin University in South Carolina and Education Affiliates in Baltimore, Maryland.
Spells holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from what is now Voorhees University in South Carolina, as well as an MBA and master’s degree in human resources management from Colorado Technical University. She is currently pursuing a doctorate from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Elana Casey has been appointed associate director of the Augusta Savage Gallery in the Fine Arts Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Most recently, she was chair of the visual arts department at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C. As an artist, she centers her work on Black diasporic histories, cultural memory, and mythologies.
Casey holds a bachelor of fine arts degree from George Washington University.
Magen Bednar has been appointed director of access services for the College of University Libraries & Learning Services at the University of New Mexico. She has worked for the University of Oklahoma Libraries since 2015, most recently serving as head of Bizzell User Services. Earlier in her tenure, she was the student success and engagement librarian.
Bednar received her bachelor’s degree in fashion merchandising from Texas Christian University and her master of library and information studies degree from the University of Oklahoma.
Myesha Carter has been named associate chief academic officer for student experience at the University of the District of Columbia. Her background includes over 15 years of experience in higher education and healthcare. In her new role, she will lead the design and execution of a holistic academic success framework and collaborate with faculty, deans, administrators, and community partners to align academic programs with student support structures.
A two-time alumna of the University of the District of Columbia, Dr. Carter holds a doctorate in administration and leadership studies from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Carly Sunseri has been promoted to assistant vice provost for institutional research in the Office of Planning, Assessment, and Institutional Research at Pennsylvania State University. She has more than a decade of experience in data science, analytics, and institutional research. Prior to her new role, she was the office’s senior director of data science and analytics.
Sunseri is a graduate of Juniata College in Pennsylvania, where she majored in information technology. She holds a master’s degree in data analytics from Penn State.
Jacqueline Powell has been named vice president of academic affairs at Shorter College in North Little Rock, Arkansas. She has previously served as president of both Danville Community College in Virginia and Metropolitan Community College in Kansas City, Missouri. More recently, she was special assistant to the chancellor of Virginia Community Colleges.
Dr. Powell holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Texas A&M University and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Texas at Arlington. She earned a second master’s degree in education and a doctorate in higher education leadership from Texas A&M University-Commerce.
Kathryn Kaoudis has been appointed vice president for administration and finance and chief financial officer at San José State University in California. She comes to her new role from the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, where she has been serving as vice chancellor and chief financial officer. Earlier, she served in the same capacity at the Community College of Denver.
Kaoudis is a graduate of Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, where she majored in business administration and accounting. She holds a master of laws degree in international business and a juris doctorate from the University of Denver.