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.