Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost Michele G. Wheatly
After playing a transformative role in catalyzing change across Syracuse University to enhance faculty, staff and student success, Michele G. Wheatly has announced that she will step down as vice chancellor and provost and will become special advisor to the Chancellor—effective Jan. 6, 2020. In her new role, Wheatly will lead women’s leadership development initiatives on campus and advise Chancellor Kent Syverud on efforts to raise the academic profile of the Atlantic Coast Conference through its Academic Consortium.
“Michele is a dedicated leader who strives to create change and accomplished many important milestones for Syracuse University,” says Chancellor Syverud. “She operationalized our Academic Strategic Plan, advanced the Campus Framework by identifying key priorities for our academic facilities investments, and catalyzed Invest Syracuse’s academic investment by recruiting top scholars and identifying funds to support 100 new faculty hires to realize the teaching and research goals of the University. We are fortunate that we can continue to benefit from her wealth of experience and deploy it to significant areas.”
“The last four years at Syracuse University have been some of the most rewarding in my 24-year career as an administrator in higher education, and I am very proud of our work together, including our successful Middle States reaccreditation efforts and launching six shared competencies to guide the undergraduate learning experience,” Provost Wheatly says. “Now, I look forward to a new role, one that allows me to concentrate on issues that most matter to me personally and professionally, including paving the way for other women faculty members and spotlighting the scholarly contributions of the ACC.”
Wheatly joined Syracuse University in 2016. She previously served as provost for West Virginia University (WVU) for four years. Among her accomplishments at WVU was the creation of her signature Women’s Leadership Initiative, which provided leadership coaching to 150 women. She also served as dean of science and math and chair of biology at Wright State University (cumulatively 15 years) after 10 years at the University of Florida and postdoctoral training at the University of Calgary, Canada. She earned a Ph.D. and B. Sc. at Birmingham University in the United Kingdom.
Chancellor Syverud intends to name an interim vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost in the near future. A provost search committee will be named in the spring semester.
About Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York state, with a global footprint and nearly 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience, as well as innovative online learning environments. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths. At Syracuse University, we offer a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges and 18 online degree programs. We have more than 15,000 undergraduates and 7,500 graduate students, more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, visit syracuse.edu.
