The Board of Trustees of the State Institutions of Higher Learning announced Monday, Nov. 22, its preferred candidates for the presidencies at Alcorn State University (ASU) and Jackson State University (JSU). M. Christopher Brown, executive vice president and provost at the historic Fisk University in Nashville, Tenn., is the board’s top choice to become president at ASU. The board also recommended Carolyn W. Meyers, former president of Norfolk State University in Norfolk, Va., as its to pick to lead JSU.
Brown, 38, is set to become the youngest president of a public university in Mississippi. He is scheduled to meet and interact with business and community leaders, faculty, staff and students and conduct a listening session on the campus in the southwestern corner of the state Tuesday, Nov. 30.
Brown came to Fisk in July 2009 from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he was dean of the university’s College of Education. He has taught at Pennsylvania State University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Missouri at Kansas City.
Brown received his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from South Carolina State University and the master’s degree in educational policy and evaluation from the University of Kentucky. He earned a doctorate in higher education from Pennsylvania State University with a cognate in public administration and political science.
Brown is the author/editor of 15 books and monographs. He earned a national reputation for his research and scholarly writing on education policy, governance, administration and institutional contexts. He is well known for his studies of historically black colleges, educational equity and professorial responsibilities and has lectured and presented research in various countries on six continents, including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America.
Meyers, 64, is set to become JSUs first full-time female president. She is scheduled to meet and interact with business and community leaders, faculty, staff and students and conduct a listening session on the main campus Wednesday, Dec. 1.
Meyers has over 30 years of experience in higher education, having served most recently as president of Norfolk State University from 2006 until her resignation in June. During her tenure as president, the university received reaffirmation of accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and received disciplinary national accreditations in business, teacher education and engineering. In addition, the university received full certification by the NCAA.
Prior to serving as president of Norfolk State University, Meyers served as Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. She has also served as a professor of mechanical engineering and dean of the College of Engineering at the same institution. Meyers served as a program director for the National Science Foundation for two years.
Meyers has published numerous articles and reports and presented over 100 invited presentations and technical papers on education and diversity topics and research and technical topics.
Meyers holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Howard University in Washington, D.C., a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. In addition, Meyers earned a doctorate from the Georgia Institute of Technology’s School of Chemical Engineering.
After Brown and Meyers have their public sessions with campus constituents, the board is expected to make a final decision on their hires. This process of public session is typically just a formality.
Presidents are paid $192,937 at Alcorn and $270,500 at Jackson State.
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