Bennett College Names Phyllis Worthy Dawkins as 18th President

The Bennett College Board of Trustees announced today the appointment of Dr. Phyllis Worthy Dawkins as the institution’s eighteenth president. Dawkins assumes the presidency after serving as interim president since Aug. 15, 2016. Bennett College is a UNCF-member institution.

Dawkins is an accomplished leader in higher education who understands the inner-workings of the accreditation process and has a wealth of experience at historically black colleges and universities. Prior to coming to Bennett, she served as acting president of Cheyney University in Cheyney, PA, where she was also provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. She has also worked at Dillard University in New Orleans and Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, NC.

“The Bennett College Board of Trustees is pleased with Dr. Dawkins’ performance during the period in which she served as interim president,” said Dr. Gladys Ashe Robinson, BOT chairwoman and a Democratic Senator from Guilford County. “She has developed a genuine relationship with students, faculty, staff and alumnae and is reaching into the religious, civic and philanthropic communities to engage them in Bennett’s present and future sustainability. We are confident that Dr. Dawkins, along with the support of trustees, will reenergize, reorganize and rebrand Bennett for future success.” >> Read More