Tuesday, July 14, 2020

With the start of our fall semester just a few weeks away, I wanted to share an important leadership transition with you. After five years of service to UNCW as Chief Diversity Officer, Dr. Kent Guion has decided to step down from that role and join the faculty in our College of Health and Human Services. Dr. Donyell Roseboro, a professor in the Watson College of Education, has agreed to fill this essential role as Interim CDO, beginning July 20.

Under Dr. Guion’s leadership, UNCW’s Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) has expanded its programming and resources, including increasing the square footage for two of its identity centers; developed successful mentoring programs for college and high school students; generated strong philanthropic support for diversity scholarships and programming; and strengthened its campus and community collaborations through initiatives like the Cape Fear Region Minority Enterprise Development Week and the DNA Discussion Project. Over the past five years, the foot traffic to OIDI’s centers – Centro Hispano, the LGBTQIA Resource Office and the Upperman African American Cultural Center – has increased by 40 percent. The university, recognized nationally for its strong graduation rates among Black students, received Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Awards from Insight Into Diversity in 2017 and 2018. Please join me in thanking Dr. Guion for his leadership and service as CDO. The Seahawk community wishes him well in his new endeavors.

Dr. Roseboro, a professor in the Department of Instructional Technology, Foundations and Secondary Education, will bring a wealth of campus and community experience with her as Interim Chief Diversity Officer. Since arriving at UNCW in 2007, she has excelled at helping the Watson College of Education strengthen partnerships with hundreds of K-12 schools across Southeastern North Carolina, building trust between the university and the communities served by the schools.

Dr. Roseboro also played an integral role in the successful launch of the university’s laboratory school, D.C. Virgo Preparatory Academy; served as director of WCE’s Professional Development System from 2011-2014; collaborated with three other faculty members to receive a Fulbright-Hays Group Study Abroad grant to take 12 teachers to study abroad in South Africa for one month; and held leadership roles as a department chair for three years and as Associate Dean of Teacher Education and Outreach from July 2017-December 2018. This past academic year, she also partnered with the Office of International Programs' Dr. Jennifer Fernandez-Villa as well as other faculty and staff on a Fulbright Teaching Excellence and Achievement grant to bring 22 international teachers to UNCW to study education in the United States. She holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum & Teaching/Cultural Studies from UNCG, a master’s degree in history from Wake Forest University, and a bachelor’s in secondary education from UNC Chapel Hill.

UNCW is at a critical juncture in the growth of its programs and services to address diversity, inclusion and equity. Under Dr. Roseboro’s leadership, I’m confident that OIDI will help the university take an even more in-depth and determined approach with the programs we are developing and will soon announce to address concerns about systemic racism expressed by students, faculty, staff and alumni. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Roseboro on this new role. I look forward to working closely with her as our campus community charts a new course for renewal and change. 

Dr. Donyell Roseboro, Interim Chief Diversity Officer