UNCF Board of Directors
Directors-at-Large
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Milton H. Jones, Jr.
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Kieth Cockrell
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Celia A. Colbert
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Gregory G. Cunningham
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Vladimir Galiothe
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Paul Gama
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Alfred G. Goldstein
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Aloysius “Ish” McLaughlin
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Ken Mehlman
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Ben Minicucci
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Rhonda Morris
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Tara Parker
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Marcos Purty
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Laurie Readhead
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Danette Anthony Reed
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David Sable
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LaSonja Scott
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William F. Stasior
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Terry Woodard
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Safroadu (Saf) Yeboah-Amankwah
Milton H. Jones, Jr.
Peachtree Providence Partners
Chair of the Board
Kieth Cockrell
Kieth Cockrell, as President of Bank of America Charlotte and Head of Sports Sponsorships, is responsible for connecting banking and investment resources offered through the bank’s eight lines of business to people and companies across the region, deploying Bank of America’s resources to address social and economic concerns, and helping the local community thrive.
Cockrell previously served as the Global Technology & Operations chief operating officer with responsibility for programs, business controls, oversight and operations as well as external relationships, for nearly 95,000 teammates in more than 35 countries.
Prior to that, Cockrell served as head of Specialty Client Services for Consumer & Small Business and president of Bank of America Michigan. During his 39-year career in financial services, Cockrell has held several key executive roles including COO for Consumer and Small business, national community markets executive responsible for 1,800 financial centers, customer service and support responsible for all call center operations and led the debit card and ATM businesses. He also oversaw the Specialty Clients Services, Life Services, Employee Financial Services and Client Escalations teams.
Cockrell is a passionate ally and advocate for a diverse and inclusive workplace. He has served as vice chair of the Global Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Council. In this role, he was instrumental in establishing several employee networks, including the Black Professional Group; the Hispanic/Latino Organization for Leadership and Advancement; the Military Support and Assistance Group; and the Black Executive Advisory Council.
In 2019, he received the Root Award and the Vanguard Award, two D&I awards recognizing his leadership role in promoting equality, unity and multiculturalism. He is an active member and advisor in several employee networks. Active in the community, he co-chaired the 2020 Charlotte City Bond Campaign. He plays a vital role on various boards with local organizations, including immediate past chair of the Levine Museum of the New South, the incoming chair for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, Foundation for the Carolinas Community Real Property Holdings, Inc., My Brother’s Keeper Charlotte-Mecklenburg, and is the vice chair of the board of trustees for HBCU Johnson C. Smith University.
Also, Cockrell has previously served on the boards of United Way, Goodwill Industries, Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina and the American Diabetes Association, which previously named him Father of the Year. Cockrell is a Michigan Chronicle Men of Excellence honoree and received the Excellence in Economic Development award from the 100 Black Men of Detroit.
Celia A. Colbert
Senior Vice President, Secretary and Assistant General Counsel
Merck & Company (Retired)
UNCF Board of Directors
Gregory G. Cunningham
Vice President, Enterprise Diversity and Inclusion
U.S. Bancorp
UNCF Board of Directors
Vladimir Galiothe
CitiBank
UNCF Board of Directors
Paul Gama
President, Personal Health Care
Procter & Gamble Co.
UNCF Board of Directors
Alfred G. Goldstein
President and CEO
A.G. & Associates
UNCF Board of Directors
Aloysius “Ish” McLaughlin
Franklin Templeton
UNCF Board of Directors
Ken Mehlman
Global Head of Public Affairs
Co-Head of Global Impact
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR)
Ben Minicucci
Alaska Airlines
UNCF Board of Directors
Rhonda Morris
Chevron
UNCF Board of Directors
Tara Parker
ExxonMobil
UNCF Board of Directors
Marcos Purty
Vice President, Global Quality, Supplier Quality & Operational Excellence
General Motors Company
UNCF Board of Directors
Marcos Purty was appointed Vice President, Global Quality, Supplier Quality & Operational Excellence for General Motors in May 2024. He is responsible for leading General Motors global quality efforts as well as leadership of the Operational Excellence group.
Prior to this position, Marcos was Vice President of Global Workplace Safety at GM, after returning from Amazon where he was Vice President, North America Fulfillment, Amazon Robotics Sortable Operations. Marcos and his team supported GM leadership in its mission to keep employees, contractors, and visitors safe at 363 sites worldwide.
Marcos joined GM in 1994 at the former Pontiac Assembly plant in Michigan and led his first international assignment in Canada at Oshawa Assembly in 2002. After returning to the U.S. in leadership roles at Pontiac Assembly and Fort Wayne Assembly in Indiana, Marcos went on to additional international assignments in Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand. In 2016, Marcos returned to the U.S. as Plant Executive Director at Lansing Delta Township Assembly in Michigan before his last assignment at GM as executive director, Global Manufacturing Strategy and Planning.
Marcos earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Florida A&M University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.
Marcos was recognized by the Career Communications Group with the 2020 Black Engineer of the Year Career Achievement Award and was a 2019 Michigan Chronicle Men of Excellence Honoree. In 2023, he was recognized as a DRIVEN nominee and featured in the 2023 DRIVEN publication, a Real Times Media program.
Marcos serves on the executive board of the Pontiac Kappa Foundation, which is a key pillar of his active support of community STEM initiatives. He is also on the board of Focus Hope, a non-profit community support organization in Detroit.
Laurie Readhead
Executive Vice President
CIO, Global Technology and Operations
Bank of America (Retired)
UNCF Board of Directors
Danette Anthony Reed
Danette Anthony Reed is the International President and CEO of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®. She is the 31st woman to lead the nation’s first African American sorority for college-educated women.
Anthony Reed ascended to the Alpha Kappa Alpha’s highest office in July 2022. Her 46 years of continuous sorority service at local, regional, and international levels have well-prepared her for this role.
As International President and CEO, she sets policies and programs. In addition, she leads the sorority’s 18-member Board of Directors representing other international officers and ten regional directors who oversee the management of the sorority’s more than 1,061 chapters and 320,000 initiated members throughout the United States and 11 other countries.
A Dallas, TX resident and retired PepsiCo executive, Anthony Reed brings decades of corporate leadership, community engagement, service, and progressive sorority governance.
During her tenure at PepsiCo, Anthony Reed rose through the operations ranks at Frito-Lay, becoming the first African American woman plant director to lead the start-up of an $80 million bakery facility in Dallas. She later moved to Frito-Lay’s corporate office and led a cross-functional team in the commercialization of $300 million in innovative products. She retired in 2017 after 34 years of service.
Anthony Reed holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA), specializing in Finance, from Southern Methodist University and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University.
In addition to her Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority service, Anthony Reed is a charter member of the Greater Denton County (TX) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated®; Top Ladies of Distinction; the Carrousels of Dallas, TX; and the National Association of Parliamentarians. Currently, she serves as treasurer of the Krugerville, TX, Community Development Corporation.
She has received numerous honors, awards, and accolades, including Who’s Who Among Executives and Professionals, Women’s Inclusion Network Lifetime Achievement Award, PepsiCo’s Global Harvey Russell Diversity and Inclusion Award, National Council of Negro Women Outstanding Service Award, Greater Denton County Chapter of The Links, Incorporated Leadership Award, Women’s Inclusion Network Leadership Development Award, and Women of Color Making an Impact Award.
David Sable
Vice Chairman, Stagwell
UNCF Board of Directors
LaSonja Scott
LaSonja Scott is an accomplished executive who brings deep financial, strategic planning and international expertise to her role as chief of staff to the chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company. Scott is responsible for the operations of the Office of the CEO, as well as leading the implementation of some of the company’s top business strategies.
Scott has nearly 30 years of experience in finance, strategic planning and accounting and has worked in the Coca-Cola system for the past 22 years in various finance positions at the company’s global headquarters as well as in its North America and Europe operations.
As a Coca-Cola system veteran, she has led teams of increasing accountability across finance, global IT, North America Foodservice, investor relations and the Controller’s Group. She also was a finance manager for the Europe Group, based in London.
Among her most notable roles, Scott helped communicate the company’s growth story to investors and build global finance capabilities. Specifically, as director of investor relations, she engaged with the global investment community to provide insights on operating results and strategy while providing business and analytical support to the senior management team.
In addition, as global finance director, she created and transformed the global finance capability strategy and delivered new and more digitized ways to grow capabilities across the organization. She developed networked communities working across departments to upskill teams in the digital, finance and enterprise governance areas.
Scott holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from South Carolina State University and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Mercer University. She is also a certified public accountant (CPA) and a certified internal auditor (CIA).
William F. Stasior
Senior Chairman (Retired)
Booz Allen Hamilton
Chair Emeritus, UNCF Board of Directors
Terry Woodard
Terry Woodard is a managing director and vice chairman in J.P. Morgan Private Bank’s Financial Sponsors Group. Woodard, along with his team of financial and service specialists, are responsible for handling the day-to-day banking, investment, tax and financial planning needs of individuals and non-profit organizations.
Woodard has been with the firm for over 35 years. He started his career with the Chase Manhattan Bank and attended the Credit Training Program. He has held positions in General Auditing, Risk Management, Credit Underwriting, and Client Management.
Currently, Woodard is the global co-chair of BOLD (Black Organization for Leadership and Development), co-chair and co-founder of the Asset Management Black Leadership Forum and a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC). He is the captain of the Morehouse College Recruiting Team and is actively involved in undergraduate recruiting at Howard University.
He is the chairman of the board of Jazz House Kids, chairman of the board of the Sphinx Organization, a member of the Friends of MoMA and a former board member of the Girls Scouts in Essex, Hudson, and Union Counties of New Jersey.
Woodard joined JPMorgan Chase after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA. He is the recipient of the Harlem YMCA Black Achievers in Industry Award, The Dreamer Award from the Morehouse Manhattan Alumni Chapter, Alumnus of the Year Award from the Morehouse College National Alumni Association and a Crain’s New York 2022 Notable Diverse Leader in Banking and Finance.
Safroadu (Saf) Yeboah-Amankwah
Intel
UNCF Board of Directors
Institutional Directors
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Dr. Anthony J. Davis
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Dr. Paulette Dillard
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Dr. Cheryl Evans Jones
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Dr. Herman J. Felton, Jr.
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Dwight Fennell
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Dr. George T. French, Jr.
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Helene D. Gayle, M.D., MPH
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Dr. Ronnie Hopkins
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Dr. Glenell M. Lee-Pruitt
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Dr. Yolanda Page
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Dr. Melva K. Wallace
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Dr. Suzanne Walsh
Dr. Anthony J. Davis
Dr. Herman J. Felton, Jr.
Herman J. Felton, Jr., Ph.D., J.D., is the 17th President & CEO of Wiley University in 2018. Before his appointment at Wiley University, he served as Wilberforce University’s 21st president. His leadership experience has included chief operating officer, senior vice president, and vice president at Livingstone College in Salisbury, North Carolina. He is also a former director of development and lecturer in the Government, Law, and International Affairs Department at Murray State University in Kentucky.
President Felton began his service at Wiley University, signaling the Bold and Audacious Vision. Under his leadership, he has achieved several significant accomplishments, including spearheading a campaign with College alumni and supporters that has generated the renovation and modernization of every building on campus. He has successfully garnered support from various foundations and local businesses, such as the Marshall Economic Development Corporation who assisted with the renovation of KBWC 91.1, the University’s radio station.
His leadership has launched the Heman Sweatt Center for Social Good and Leadership, created a training space for physical education majors, and implemented the student health, counseling, and wellness unit, now staffed with full-time licensed practitioners.
The University has received over $20 million in grants and gifts, generating some of the largest gifts in the University’s history. In addition to his accomplishments on Wiley’s campus, President Felton has immersed himself in the fabric of the Marshall Community, where he is a member of the Marshall Rotary Club, the Marshall Chamber of Commerce, and the Citizens Advisory Council.
President Felton earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Florida. Also, he earned his Juris Doctorate from the Levin College of Law at the University of Florida and completed his graduate work at Jackson State University, where he earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Administration and Supervision.
He is co-founder of the Higher Education Leadership Foundation (H.E.L.F.), an organization ensuring that a pipeline of transformational, highly skilled, and principled leaders are identified and cultivated to meet the needs, challenges, and opportunities facing the Nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities. President Felton served in the United States Marine Corps for eight years. He is married to the lovely Katherine Anne Felton and is the father of Jamal, Paige, and Herman, III (Trey).
Dwight Fennell
Dwight J. Fennell is the 23rd president of Texas College (Tyler, TX). He is a native of Miami, FL. Following graduation from high school, he immediately enrolled in Saint Augustine’s College (now Saint Augustine’s University) in Raleigh, NC, where he completed the baccalaureate degree in history and government. He pursued and completed the master of arts degree in history at Atlanta University, and a second master of science degree in education at Florida International University in Miami, FL.
He received the education specialist and doctor of philosophy degrees from Florida State University in Tallahassee. He has completed post-doctoral work in educational leadership with the American Council on Education as an ACE Fellow at Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. Fennell began his professional career in higher education at Florida International University, where he worked in various capacities including community service initiatives, adult and continuing education and as assistant director of the honors program. He also worked at Florida Atlantic University as director of the Student Retention Program.
After leaving the State University System of Florida, Fennell taught at Morris Brown College in Atlanta, and later at Saint Augustine’s College (his alma mater). While at Saint Augustine’s College, he became a tenured associate professor of history and later vice president for academic affairs, a position he held for seven of the 11 years he spent at the institution. Fennell relocated to Dallas in 1998 to become provost of Paul Quinn College with the responsibilities of both academic affairs and student affairs. He was appointed interim president of the college in 2001, and in 2002, he received the unanimous vote of the Board of Trustees to become the 32nd president of Paul Quinn College.
During his tenure as president, the college experienced an increase in enrollment, increased student retention, enhanced community collaborations, increased funding of student scholarships, renovations to the campus buildings and increase in the college’s endowment. Fennell served as Executive Director of Project Development in 2005 at The Potter’s House Incorporated with the ministry of Bishop T.D. Jakes for two years. He held the overall responsibilities for design, development and construction of Capella Park, a residential subdivision featuring more than 1,000 single-family homes. He also had responsibility for the administrative oversight of Clay Academy, a private, Christian college preparatory school. Fennell led the preparatory school to accreditation, scholarship funding, enrollment and grade level growth.
As president of Texas College, Fennell leads with a focus on “student centeredness.” This means that his primary direction is with creating an educational environment and processes that lead to student learning in an atmosphere that is conducive for such. Fennell’s approach to leadership is that of “shared governance,” and he holds his team to accountability, integrity and productivity. Fennell’s “student centeredness” focus has been embraced by faculty, staff and students. The results of this focus have led to facility improvements, academic program refinement, accreditation enhancements, enrollment growth, and growth in the college’s endowment along with enhanced relationships with the local communities.
Fennell is married to Angelia, and they have one son, Dwight, Jr.
Dr. George T. French, Jr.
Dr. George T. French, Jr., is the the fifth president of Clark Atlanta University (CAU).
Dr. French served as president of Miles College, 2006-2019 before taking the lead at CAU. During his tenure, Miles College exceeded capital campaign goals—besting previous fundraising records, achieved an unprecedented financial composite score to position the school for growth, increased student access to educational funding, and more than doubled the size of the existing campus with key land acquisitions.
Prior to serving as the president of Miles College, Dr. French served in the roles of acting and interim president for the institution between October and December 2005. Before serving as interim president, Dr. French served as a member of the president’s cabinet in the capacity of director of institutional planning and development, and as such directed the offices of alumni affairs, federal contracts and grants, Title III, institutional research and effectiveness, congressional relations and public relations.
A native of Louisville, KY, Dr. French earned a bachelor of arts in political science with an emphasis in policy analysis from the University of Louisville. He was competitively accepted into the University of Richmond Law School and completed two years of studies before being recruited by Miles College to serve as the director of development. He completed his final year of law school at Miles Law School, earning a juris doctorate. Dr. French received his Ph.D. in higher education from Jackson State University.
Dr. French also has great influence off campus grounds. He served two terms, respectively, on the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges’ Board of Trustees, and the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity. He is a member of the Birmingham Business Alliance’s Executive Committee and Birmingham Museum of Art’s Board of Directors. In 2015, Dr. French co-founded Higher Education Leadership Foundation to help prepare highly-skilled talent for positions of leadership at historically Black colleges and universities.
“I am thankful and blessed to have the opportunity to lead another great institution and serve as the fifth president of Clark Atlanta University,” Dr. French said. “CAU has strong faculty, students and academics. I’m optimistic about the university’s next stage of growth and eager to build on the strong foundation CAU has established.”
Dr. Ronnie Hopkins
The Voorhees University Board of Trustees named Dr. Ronnie Hopkins to serve as the 10th president of the institution, effective July 9, 2021.
“Dr. Hopkins brings a wealth of higher-education experience, expansive leadership, fundraising acumen and vast institutional knowledge. His appointment perfectly positions the college to advance and accelerate the current momentum and focus on enrollment, innovation and fiscal stability. His remarkable demeanor, skills, prudent judgement and interpersonal skills will be a great asset. We welcome him and look forward to his leadership as we ‘begin, believe and become’ in this next chapter,” said Dr. Traci Young-Cooper, vice chairperson of the board.
Prior to being named the president of Voorhees, Hopkins served as interim president and before that he was the institution’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. He is the accreditation liaison and a tenured professor of English.
Hopkins has been in public and higher education for nearly 30 years, serving in senior leadership roles and instructional positions that involve supervision of faculty, staff, students, budgeting, and strategic planning. He has authored more than 10 research articles and received $30 million in grant funding to advance higher education priorities.
Hopkins has conducted international scholarly research and made presentations in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa; Buea, Cameroon, Central West Africa; the University of Technology at Quibdo, Choco, South America; Guilan, Beijing, and Shanghai, Republic of China; University of Ghana-Legon, Accra, Ghana, West Africa; Merida, Mexico; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; and, Cape Town, South Africa.
He actively serves as an Off-site and On-site Reaffirmation Committee Evaluator for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. He is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Possible Worlds Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides full-service career strategic directions and opportunities in education and employment for disenfranchised citizens impacted by homelessness, incarceration, and HIV/AIDS.
Before coming to Voorhees, he served at Benedict College as founding dean of the Freshman Institute and the School of Honors. Other positions in which he served at Benedict included professor of English, chair of the Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Mass Communication, and dean of the School of Continuing Education, Graduate Studies and Lifelong Learning.
Hopkins earned doctoral and master’s degrees in English from Michigan State University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in English with a secondary teaching certification from North Carolina Central University. He also completed postdoctoral studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received a Doctor of Humane Letters Honoris Causa from Saint Monica University in Buea, Cameroon, Central West Africa.
Hopkins is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Bible Way Church of Atlas Road, and the Class of 2020 Executive Leadership Academy sponsored by the American Academic Leadership Institute for preparation of experienced college executive officers to become successful presidents and chancellors.
For more information, contact the Office of Communications at 803.780.1191 or at communications@voorhees.edu.
Dr. Glenell M. Lee-Pruitt
Jarvis Christian University Board of Trustees has selected Dr. Glenell M. Lee-Pruitt as the university’s 13th president, effective July 1, 2023. She succeeds Dr. Lester C. Newman, who served as the JCU President for 11 years.
Dr. Lee-Pruitt brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the university, including higher education administration and academic affairs, having served as second in command and as a member of the executive cabinet since August 2012 as the provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at Jarvis. She has been instrumental in increasing student enrollment, increasing articulation agreements, and establishing the Renaissance Program for Adult Learners on the JCU campus and the JCU Dallas Teaching Site. She has also provided leadership in enhancing academic program offerings, which include online degree completion programs and two online graduate programs.
Previously, she served at Mississippi Valley State University as dean of University College and First Year Experience, director of Community/Service Learning, director of the Renaissance Learning Adult Education Program, and tenured professor in the Department of Social Work.
An ordained elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Lee-Pruitt is a highly sought-after speaker and presenter. She also is active in campus, community, and ministry activities. She holds a Bachelor of Social Work degree from Jackson State University, a Master of Social Work degree from Temple University, a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Social Work from Jackson State University, and a Master of Divinity from Payne Theological Seminary.
Moreover, she has completed the Council of Independent Colleges’ Presidential Vocation and Institutional Mission Program and the Millennium Leadership Institute. She has received several honors, awards, and recognitions including Faculty of the Year and the UNCF Trailblazer Award.
Lee-Pruitt is the current pastor of St. Matthew A.M.E Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
Jarvis Christian University is dedicated to empowering students to achieve their career goals through an affordable academic experience that prepares them for today’s global economy.
Whether a student is a recent high school graduate or a working adult seeking career advancement, Jarvis Christian University develops students of all ages intellectually, socially, spiritually, and emotionally.
Dr. Melva K. Wallace
For over twenty years Dr. Melva K. Wallace has worked in higher education as a leader and as a fierce national advocate. Today, she proudly serves as the seventh President and CEO of one of the top private liberal arts colleges in the country, Huston-Tillotson University, an HBCU in Austin, TX.
In 2023, Dr. Wallace was honored by the United Negro College Fund as a president in leadership. Because of her national prominence in higher education as a national spokesperson for HBCUs, she has been featured in a number of magazines and media publications expressing her views on these beloved institutions. In 2023, she was named by Austin Business Journal as one of the Texas 100 Top Influential Professionals to Watch. Wallace is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated.
Wallace received a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communication and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Grambling State University. She also earned her Ph.D. in Urban Higher Education from Jackson State University.
She is married to her phenomenal husband, Dr. DL Wallace, of Flower Mound, Texas. You can follow her on Instagram at MKW7th to learn more about her views on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Dr. Suzanne Walsh
Suzanne Walsh earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from Cornell University, as well as a master’s degree in social work and law degree from Case Western Reserve University. She is a member of the Ohio Bar, and has received national recognition for her portfolio of work with organizations at the intersection of innovation, technology and learning.
Walsh will also work closely with the Board and the Bennett Reengineering Committee (BRC), which was appointed earlier in 2019 to identify ways to transform the College and keep it relevant in a rapidly changing educational environment.
Although Walsh has a storied career in education, this will be her first role at a four-year institution. Previously, she served as the deputy director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Postsecondary Success division, where she focused on higher education issues, helping students do better in college, and assisting institutions in making changes to improve graduation rates. Prior to that, Walsh worked on an initiative to make college more affordable and increase college productivity at the Lumina Foundation in Indianapolis. She also worked as an administrator for a community college in Cleveland back in 1998.