Six Women Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to University Dean Positions

Julie Petherbridge has been appointed dean of the Stetson-Hatcher School of Business at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. She is an associate professor of accountancy and has served as interim dean. Prior to her appointment as interim dean, Dr. Petherbridge served as associate dean of graduate programs in the School of Business.

Dr. Petherbridge earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia. She holds a master of professional accountancy degree and a Ph.D. in accounting, both from Georgia State University.

Helen Boucher, chief of the Division of Geographic Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, professor of medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, and a director of the Stuart B. Levy Center for Integrated Management of Antimicrobial Resistance, has been named interim dean for Tufts University School of Medicine. She is the first woman to lead the medical school.

Dr. Boucher is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, where she majored in English. She earned her medical degree at what is now the John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Medical School of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

Belmont University in Nashville has announced the appointment of Tamika Wordlow Williams as its new dean of students. She has been serving as the assistant vice president and dean of students for Rhode Island College.

Dr. Williams received a bachelor’s degree in political science from Fisk University in Nashville. She earned a master of public administration degree in nonprofit management from the University of Arkansas and a doctorate in educational leadership from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.

Teri Browne has been named interim dean of the College of Social Work at the University of South Carolina, effective August 1.Dr. Browne is an associate professor and the college’s associate dean for faculty and research. She serves as a senior administrator for all faculty and the college’s research activities. She joined the faculty in 2008.

Dr. Browne earned a master of social work degree at the University at Buffalo of the State University of New York. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration.

Michelle Rinehart, associate dean for academic affairs and outreach in the College of Design at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has been appointed interim dean of the College, effective August 1. She joined the faculty at Georgia Tech in 2031.

Dr. Rinehart holds a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Michigan, and a master of architecture degree from Tulane University in New Orleans. She earned a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania.

Karen Brown was appointed dean of the School of Education at the University of the Virgin Islands. She has been interim dean for the past two years. Dr. Brown joined the institution in 2015 as an associate director of the Virgin Islands University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities.

Dr. Brown holds a master’s degree in speech-language pathology from Nova Southeastern University and a master of public health degree from Temple University in Philadelphia. She earned a Ph.D. in special education with a concentration in curriculum and instruction from the University of South Florida.