Dillard University selects Dr. Rochelle Ford as its next president

By Nayita Wilson
Contributing Writer

Rochelle Ford, Ph.D. will take the helm as president of Dillard University on July 1 – bringing nearly 30 years of higher education leadership and pedagogical experience to Louisiana’s first historically black college and university (HBCU).

Ford, a second-generation HBCU alumna, is transitioning from her role as dean at Elon University’s School of Communi-cations to lead Dillard into a new era. She said value alignment as well as her belief in Dillard’s mission and commitment to developing leaders inspired her to pursue the role.

“Dillard produces and cultivates leaders who live ethically, and they are able to think and communicate precisely. But it’s not just about thinking and communicating. It’s also about acting courageously to make the world a better place. That’s what Dillard represents, and that’s what I try to live in my own career,” Ford said. “To be part of a community with a wonderful legacy—a rich legacy—and the opportunity to continue its growth and trajectory and to be sustained as an institution is something I wanted to be a part of.”

Dr. ROCHELLE FORD

Ford said her initial priorities will involve getting to know staff, students, parents, businesses, the New Orleans community, and those industries that employ Dillard graduates. She said “listening” to these voices will be paramount to assessing strengths, identifying challenges, and developing strategic solutions that are budget aligned and will move the university forward.

“Dr. Ford is a dynamic, charismatic and visionary leader,” said Michael D. Jones, Esq., chair of Dillard’s board of trustees. “Students, faculty, and trustees were blown away by her insight, passion and drive. As impressive as Dillard has been over the past 150 years in producing history makers and change agents, there is no question that, under Dr. Ford’s leadership, the best is yet to come.”

At Elon’s School of Communications, Ford increased enrollment by 15 percent, increased the number of faculty members, collaborated with staff on an organizational restructure, and add new undergraduate programs.

Prior to joining Elon, Ford worked in administrative leadership in higher education: provost faculty fellow and special assistant to the provost at Syracuse University; chair of the public relations department at Syracuse’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications; co-director at Howard University’s Provost Center for Academic Excellence; and associate dean for research and academic affairs at Howard’s School of Communications.

While at Syracuse, Ford served as co-chair for the university’s Middle States reaccreditation and launched a university-wide required common first year experience. She also helped lead the establishment of Howard’s university-wide Academic Center for Excellence.

Ford’s work in academia includes serving as a professor at Howard University’s School of Communications for 16 years. She also served as a Fulbright visiting scholar at University of The Gambia in West Africa and taught at Syracuse, University College, and University of Tennessee.

When she assumes her role at Dillard, Ford will be the eighth president in the university’s history, succeeding Walter Kimbrough, Ph.D. She will also be the second woman to hold the position in a permanent capacity. Bettye Parker Smith, Ph.D. served as interim president from 2004-2005. Marvalene Hughes, Ph.D. served as Dillard’s president from 2005-2011.

“The future that I envision for Dillard is that Dillard remains a place that attracts leaders, thinkers, and artists—not just of today but of tomorrow—and that Dillard continues to equip those leaders, thinkers and artists with the tools that they need to imagine and build a better world,” Ford said.

This article originally published in the May 30, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.