WASHINGTON (April 16, 2024) – Mary Dana Hinton, Ph.D., president of Hollins University in Roanoke, VA, has been elected chair of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU).  Hinton leads a team of four new board officers and 14 new board members who will take office on July 1, 2024.
 
Founded in 1976, NAICU is the only national membership organization solely focused on representing private, nonprofit higher education on public policy issues in Washington, DC. NAICU board members set the association’s agenda on federal higher education policy, actively encourage support for the association’s priorities and initiatives, and oversee the organization’s financial administration.  Board members serve three-year terms, while officers serve one-year terms.
 
“Mary Dana Hinton is a forward-thinking, powerful, and respected college leader, a passionate voice for the liberal arts and educational equity in private higher education, and an expert on higher education leadership,” said NAICU President Barbara K. Mistick, D.B.A. “I look forward to working with her in the coming year as the sector navigates complex new regulatory and legislative environments while striving to advance the goals of private, nonprofit higher education.”
 
“I am extraordinarily honored to lead NAICU during this time of significant challenges for private, nonprofit colleges and universities,” said Hinton. “NAICU’s effective advocacy on behalf of its members will be critical in the year ahead.”
 
Hinton will succeed Constance Ledoux Book, Ph.D., president of Elon University (NC), who will remain on the board as immediate past chair.

Hinton Background
Mary Dana Hinton, Ph.D., is the 13^th president of Hollins University and president emerita of the College of Saint Benedict in St. Joseph, MN. An active and respected proponent of the liberal arts and inclusion, her leadership reflects a deep and abiding commitment to educational equity and the education of women.
 
Under her leadership, Hollins established the Hollins Opportunity for Promise through Education (HOPE) scholar program, designed to support young women from the greater Roanoke Valley region who wish to pursue a college degree at Hollins by providing free tuition for four years. Also under her leadership, the university received the largest single gift in the school’s history: $75 million to fund scholarships and address financial need. In 2023, Hollins launched the Transforming Learning, Transforming Lives: The Levavi Oculos Strategic Plan and accompanying capital campaign.
 
Hinton’s new book Leading from the Margins, based on her TedX Talk of the same name, was published by Johns Hopkins University Press in February 2024. Hinton’s scholarship focuses on higher education leadership, strategic planning, the role of education in peace building, African American religious history, and inclusion in higher education. She is the author of The Commercial Church: Black Churches and the New Religious Marketplace in America and a frequent op-ed contributor across higher education publications.
 
Hinton is a member of the board of directors for InterFaith America, Mount Saint Mary’s University (CA), and The Teagle Foundation. She is a Commissioner on the AGB Council on Higher Education as a Strategic Asset and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
 
Hinton earned a Ph.D. in religion and religious education with high honors from Fordham University (NY), a Master of Arts degree in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas, Lawrence, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from Williams College (MA).

Other New NAICU Board Officers

Three other individuals were elected as Board officers, serving one-year terms expiring in June 2025:

• Robert L. Manuel, Ph.D., president of DePaul University in Chicago, IL, will serve as Vice Chair.  He is in line to assume the board chair post in July 2025.
• José D. Padilla, J.D., president of Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, IN, will serve as Treasurer.
• Charlie T. McCormick, Ph.D., president of Schreiner University in Kerrville, TX will serve as Secretary.

Five board members have been appointed as chairs of the association’s standing committees on policy and programs and will join the officers as members of the Executive Committee:
Five board members have been appointed as chairs of the association’s standing committees on policy and programs and will join the officers as members of the Executive Committee:

• Roger D. Drake, Ed.D., president of Central Methodist University in Fayette, MO, will serve as chair of the Audit Committee.
• José D. Padilla, Ph.D., president of Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, IN, will chair the Committee on Accountability.
• Richanne C. Mankey, Ed.D., president of Defiance College, in Defiance, OH, will chair the Committee on Policy Analysis & Public Relations.
• John E. Cech, Ph.D., president of Carroll College in Helena, MT, will chair the Committee on Student Aid.
• Elizabeth L. Paul, Ph.D., president of Nazareth College in Rochester, NY will serve as chair of the Committee on Tax Policy.

 Two other board members, representing allied organizations will also serve on the Executive Committee:

•  Jennifer Widness, J.D., president of the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges in West Hartford, CT, will represent the National Association of Independent College and University State Executives, whose members lead the state associations of private, nonprofit colleges and universities in 38 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
• Michael A. McDonald, Ph.D., president of the Great Lakes Colleges Association in Ann Arbor, MI, will represent the NAICU Secretariat. The Secretariat consists of 26 member associations representing the many regional and special-purpose independent colleges and universities across the country.

New NAICU Board Members
Seven individuals were elected to three-year terms ending in June 2027, representing the association’s eight national regions:

• Mark R. Nemec, Ph.D., president of Fairfield University, in Fairfield, CT, will represent Region I (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont).
• Ellen M. Granberg, Ph.D., president of The George Washington University in Washington, DC, will represent Region II (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York).
• Larry Stimpert, Ph.D., president of Hampden-Sydney College in Hampden-Sydney College, VA, will represent Region IV (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia).
• Jorge G. Gonzalez, Ph.D., president of Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, MI, will represent Region V (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin).
• Paul Stumb IV, Ph.D., president of Cumberland University in Lebanon, TN, will represent Region VI (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas).
• Amy Bragg Carey, Ed.D., president of Friends University in Wichita, KS, will represent Region VII (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota).
• Barbara J. Morris, Ph.D., president of Prescott College in Prescott, AZ, will represent Region VIII (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming).

 
In addition, Jonathan D. Green, D.M.A., president of Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, PA, has been selected to represent Region III (Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia) after the resignation of the elected NAICU member.

Four additional individuals were appointed to three-year terms as at-large board members with terms ending in June 2027:

• Xavier A. Cole, Ph.D., president of Loyola University New Orleans in New Orleans, LA, will serve from Region VI
• Barry H. Corey, Ph.D., president of Biola University in LaMirada, CA, will serve from Region VIII
• George T. French Jr., Ph.D., president of Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, GA, will serve from Region IV
• Julio Frenk, Ph.D., president of University of Miami in Miami, FL, will serve from Region IV
• Rana Altenburg, associate vice president of public affairs at Marquette University (WI), will serve as an ad hoc, nonvoting member representing government affairs officers.

At large members are appointed to redress any imbalances in the membership of the board.