ATLANTA, GA - The Board of Trustees of Spelman College has appointed Dr. Beverly
Daniel Tatum as the institution's ninth president. Dr. Tatum, a scholar, teacher, author
and administrator, will assume her duties at Spelman in August 2002.
"The Board, and especially the members of the Search Committee, have worked
diligently to find the right woman to lead and inspire Spelman College," said Trustee
Chair Dr. June Gary Hopps. "We have selected the best and we are confident that Dr.
Tatum will build on Spelman's traditions and enhance Spelman's mission to develop the
intellectual, ethical and leadership potential of its students."
Dr. Tatum comes to Spelman from a 13-year career at Mount Holyoke College where she is
acting President and Dean of the college. Her noted book, "Why Are All The Black Kids
Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race," exploded on
the national scene in 1997; and she has been a featured lecturer on the subject of race
relations, appearing on several panels around the country, including President Clinton's
Initiatives on Race. Prior to joining Mount Holyoke, she was an Associate Professor and
Assistant Professor at Westfield State College in Westfield, MA. and a lecturer at the
University of California at Santa Barbara's Department of Black Studies.
A fourth generation professor, Dr. Tatum was raised in Bridgewater, MA. She earned a B.A.
Degree from Wesleyan University in psychology and a M.A. Degree and a Ph.D. in clinical
psychology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
"In the selection of Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, Spelman College continues to be
blessed with women of genius," said Yvonne Jackson, Search Committee Chair. "Dr.
Tatum's capability and work in building an entire College community will serve Spelman
well. Her impressive leadership talents and unique sense of academic mission are
extraordinary."
Dr. Audrey Forbes Manley, Spelman's retiring President, leaves the college well positioned
for transition into the twenty-first century with a strong financial footing and an
improved infrastructure. "This is an exciting time for Spelman," Dr. Manley
said, "and I am looking forward to greeting Dr. Tatum and welcoming her to the
Spelman community. I will offer my assistance to Dr. Tatum in whatever manner necessary
toward the best interest of Spelman."
"Spelman College holds a very special place in higher education, and I am
tremendously honored by my selection as the next president. As the granddaughter of a
Spelman woman, I have been the beneficiary of its wonderful legacy of preparing black
women for leadership, and I look forward to working with the faculty, staff, students, and
alumnae to build on its long tradition of academic excellence and mission of empowerment
and service," Dr. Tatum said.
Spelman College, founded in 1881, is a liberal arts college for African-American women.
As a part of the largest consortium of Black colleges in the world, Spelman
has more than 2000 students enrolled from 45 states and 19 foreign countries and boasts a
student/faculty ratio of 14-to-1. |
