Duke University Dean Appointed As Next President Of UMBC
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The University System of Maryland announced Monday its Board of Regents has appointed Dr. Valerie Ashby as the next president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Dr. Ashby is currently the Dean of Duke University's Trinity College of Arts & Sciences. She is succeeding Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, whose three-decade tenure as President comes to an end with his retirement at the end of this academic year.
"To follow President Freeman Hrabowski is a distinct privilege as he has been a role model for so many in higher education over the last 30 years, including myself," Ashby said. "His extraordinary leadership and dedication to UMBC ensures that I am arriving at a university that is already performing at a very high level. There is no ceiling on what we can achieve from here."
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Dr. Ashby has been Dean of Trinity College of Arts & Sciences since 2015, and before that, she chaired the chemistry department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
At UNC Dr. Ashby also chaired the College of Arts & Sciences Faculty Diversity Task Force and directed a program aimed at increasing the number of underrepresented students completing doctoral degrees in STEM fields.
Dr. Ashby received her B.A. and Ph.D. degrees in chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and completed her postdoctoral research in Germany.
"Dr. Ashby is clearly the impressive scholar and dynamic leader we need to build on the strong foundation of inclusive excellence at UMBC," said Board Chair Linda Gooden. "UMBC is a jewel, nationally and internationally recognized for its innovative teaching and pathbreaking research. All of this success is due to the dedication and hard work of President Hrabowski and his outstanding team."
The new President will begin her tenure on August 1.
