VCU news

Following a national search, Virginia Commonwealth University has appointed two new senior leaders to the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Deborah Noble-Triplett, Ph.D., has been named the new senior vice provost for academic affairs, effective the beginning of next semester, and Katherine Bassard, Ph.D., has been appointed senior vice provost for faculty affairs, effective Dec. 1. In their new positions, Noble-Triplett and Bassard will work collaboratively to strengthen the academic mission of the university and to recruit and retain outstanding faculty.

Since 2006, Noble-Triplett has served as assistant vice president in the offices of academic affairs and human resources for the University of Missouri System in Columbia, Missouri. She began her service at UM in 2000 as assistant professor of human resources and organizational behavior at the Bloch School of Management at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. In 2004, she moved to the UM System where she has served as administrative faculty fellow in the Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and interim director of the University of Missouri South African Education Program. Noble-Triplett received her undergraduate degree in human development and social policy from Northwestern University. She earned her M.A. in industrial relations and an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in psychology, management, industrial relations from Wayne State University.

In her new role, Noble-Triplett will ensure the integrity, quality and transparency of academic programs and oversee policies and procedures governing the graduate and undergraduate curriculum. Additionally, she will provide leadership and guidance for academic program review and the reaffirmation process required by VCU’s regional accrediting body, SACS-COC.

Prior to joining VCU in 1999 as associate professor of English, Bassard served as assistant and associate professor at the University of California-Berkeley. She was promoted to full professor at VCU in 2010. In 2012, she was appointed chair of the Department of English. She also serves as affiliate faculty in the Department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies and as affiliate research faculty in the Department of African American Studies. Bassard holds three degrees in English: a B.A. from Wake Forest University, an M.A. from VCU and a Ph.D. from Rutgers University. She also received a graduate certificate in women’s studies from Rutgers.

Bassard’s new role will include overseeing the university’s promotion and tenure process, including providing tenure-eligible faculty with the tools to be successful in advancing their careers; developing and implementing a universitywide mentorship program; strengthening professional development for department chairs and other academic leaders; overseeing and developing faculty awards; and other tasks associated with academic personnel issues.

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