The Delaware State University Board of Trustees announced Nov. 20 the selection of Dr. Harry Lee Williams as the school’s 10th president.
The decision was a unanimous one, said university spokesman Carlos Holmes. Williams was named to the job following an executive session of the board, Holmes said.
Williams succeeds Dr. Allen L. Sessoms, who resigned in August 2008 to accept a president post at the University of the District of Columbia. Dr. Claibourne D. Smith, chairman of the Board of Trustees, has served as the acting president since Sessoms’ departure.
The school had pared down a number of contenders to Williams and Dr. Leroy Nunery.
“DSU is at a place where it needs a leader who can tackle the challenges before us, meet them and find solutions,” said Dr. John Land, acting chairman of the board of trustees. “Dr. Harry Williams has proven in every job he has taken that he focuses on strategic priorities, aligns resources and ensures the institution is on a pathway for success.
“Equally important, we are at a turning point in history for historically black institutions, and we need a leader who understands that and can expertly merge our historic purpose with the need to be known as an institution of higher education that exceptionally educates all students for a global marketplace,” Land said. “The board is confident that Dr. Williams will do just that with rigor, enthusiasm and deep commitment.”
Smith, who temporarily stepped down as chairman and member of the board to assume the acting president post, will return to his previous board chairmanship responsibilities. Land, who has served as acting board chairman since Sessoms’ departure, will return to his previous post as vice chairman.
Williams has served as the DSU provost and vice president of Academic Affairs since July 2008. Under Williams’ leadership, Holmes said the university established a new General Education Program, a Distance Education Strategic Plan and a Middle States Monitoring Report Plan. Under his provost leadership, the university successfully completed searches that led to the hiring of a new dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Science, a director of Distance Learning, a director of the Honors Program and an associate vice president for Sponsored Programs.
Prior to his arrival at DSU, Williams served at the University of North Carolina General Administration as interim associate vice president for Academic Affairs beginning in September 2007 and was later elevated in March 2008 to interim senior associate vice president for Academic and Student Affairs in which he focused on access and outreach for the 17 campuses of the UNC system. He remained in that latter post until he became the DSU provost.
Williams earned a Bachelor of Science in Communication Broadcasting, a Master of Arts in Educational Media, both from Appalachian State University. He earned an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from East Tennessee State University.
He is married to Dr. Robin S. Williams, and they have two children, Austin, 13 and Gavin, 8.
