Eight Women Named to Dean Positions at Universities Across the United States

Valerie L. Holmes has been appointed associate vice president for student success and dean of students at Texas State University. She most recently served as associate vice president for student success at Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis. She previously held student services positions with Prairie View A&M University in Texas, Wake Forest University in North Carolina, the University of Illinois Chicago, and Grand Valley State University in Michigan.

Holmes received her bachelor’s degree in African American world studies from the University of Iowa and her master’s degree in educational leadership and policy studies from Iowa State University.

Carol Stabile has been named the permanent dean of the Robert D. Clark Honors College at the University of Oregon. She has served as interim dean for the past four years. For nearly two decades, she has held various leadership positions with the university including director for the Center for the Study of Women in Society, head of the department of women and gender studies, interim divisional dean for social sciences, and associate dean for strategic initiatives in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Stabile is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, where she majored in English. She holds a master’s degree and doctorate in English from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Jill Kolesar has been named dean of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Iowa. She currently serves as a university research professor, the Dr. Michael Karpf Endowed Chair in Precision Medicine, and co-leader of the translational oncology program at the University of Kentucky.

Dr. Kolesar is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in pharmacy and master’s degree in epidemiology. She holds a doctor of pharmacy degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center.

Esther Ntuli has been named interim dean of the College of Education at Idaho State University. She has been a faculty member in the university’s department of teaching and educational studies for over a decade. During her tenure, she has served as chair of her department, as well as associate dean of the College of Education.

Dr. Ntuli earned degrees from Africa University in Zimbabwe and Illinois State University.

Martha Kline has been selected to serve as interim dean of campus and community relations at Ohio University Lancaster. She has worked at Ohio University’s Lancaster campus for nearly 30 years, currently serving as an associate professor of chemistry.

Dr. Kline holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Ohio University and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of North Carolina.

Sheryl Kennedy Haydel has been appointed dean of the College of Music and Media at Loyola University in New Orleans. She has served as interim dean for the past year. Prior to her interim appointment, she served as director of the School of Communication and Design.

Dr. Haydel is a graduate of Clark Atlanta University, where she majored in mass media. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Maryland, an MBA in marketing from the University of Wisconsin, and a Ph.D. in mass communication from the University of Southern Mississippi.

Rene S. Parmar has been named dean of the School of Education at the State University of New York at New Paltz. With over four decades of experience in education, she currently serves as dean of the School of Education at Lehman College in the Bronx, New York.

Dr. Parmar is a graduate of the University of Jabalpur in India, where she received her bachelor’s degree in liberal arts and economics. She holds a master of education degree in special education from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, and a Ph.D. in special education from the University of North Texas.

Michele V. Manual has been named the dean of the Swanson School of Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, making her the first woman to hold the position. She currently serves as chair of the department of materials science and engineering, chair of the nuclear engineering program, and the E. Hummel Professor of Electronic Materials at the University of Florida.

Dr. Manual holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from Northwestern University in Illinois.