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Administration:Oconee College Faculty & Staff President: Meredith Chapman-Wright Upon completion of her undergraduate studies, Dr. Chapman-Wright remained at Wellesley for three years where she served in multiple areas including the Office of the President, and First Year Programs. It was during this time that she began her graduate studies at Boston College. Once she completed her M.Ed., Dr. Chapman-Wright accepted a position at Wichita State University where she served as the Assistant Director of the Honors Program for four years, three of which she served as an adjunct faculty member in the College of Education. Dr. Chapman-Wright then moved to Pennsylvania State to begin her doctoral studies. While at Penn State, Dr. Chapman-Wright served as the Director of the University Learning Centers where she earned numerous accolades for her initiatives. Over the course of her seven years at the University, she was promoted to Executive Director for the Division of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Dean for Advising. After leaving Penn State, Dr. Chapman-Wright accepted the position of Associate Dean of the College, Dean of Freshmen in the Undergraduate College of Arts & Sciences at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where she also served as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Education at the University. She served in this capacity for five years until her promotion to Dean of the College, which she served for two additional years until being recruited for the presidency at Oconee. In 2005, Dr. Chapman-Wright was appointed president. Throughout her career, Dr. Chapman-Wright has written three books on the history of women in higher education, and has published over 50 journal articles. In addition to her numerous awards, she is recognized by the American Association of University Women for 2000 for her contributions to higher education. As former president of the Wellesley College Alumnae Association, Dr. Chapman-Wright is often invited back to her alma mater to speak to incoming students about her experiences. Dr. Chapman-Wright has been married to her husband, Martin, for 23 years. Their son, Eric, is 19 years old and is a student at Wake Forest University. Assistant to the President (Legislative Liaison): Randall Wilson Mr. Wilson worked as an Admissions Counselor for Florida State University for three years before going to Stetson to obtain his master’s degree. He then acquired a position at Eckerd College (Florida) as the Director of Public Information and began working as a Liaison with their Athletic department. Mr. Wilson was a baseball player while attending Abilene Christian University, so he was familiar with college athletics and was able to assist Eckerd through some difficult issues pertaining to its image. Mr. Wilson then went into politics and served as an aid to Florida Senator, Frank Johnson, for five years. His uncle, a member of Oconee’s Board of Trustees, encouraged him to move to River City, where he was soon hired as the Director of Public Information at Oconee College. After working in this position for approximately two years, he applied for the Assistant to the President position upon the retirement of his predecessor. He has been in this position for the past seven years. His wife, Barbara, is a registered nurse at a local hospital. Both are very active in local community service organizations. Assistant to the President (Budget & Legal): Darrell Spencer Mr. Spencer worked as a lawyer with legal aid for three years in Chicago after receiving his law degree. He then took a position as an attorney with the legal affairs office at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst, as his wife, Cara, began her doctoral program in History. After his wife completed her degree, she was offered an Assistant Professor position at Oconee College and they moved to River City. After working with a local law firm for a little over a year, Mr. Spencer acquired the position as consultant to the College on several legal matters which involved the institution. Having served in this position for a little over a year, Mr. Spencer was offered the Assistant to the President and has served in this role for the past four years. He and Cara have one son, David, who is two years old and a three month old daughter, Kiesha. Vice President for Academic Affairs: Arthur Ramirez Dr. Ramirez has ten years of teaching experience at Rhodes College (Memphis, TN). He worked for seven years as Dean of Political Science and History at the College of Charleston (South Carolina). Dr. Ramirez has worked at Oconee College for the past nine years. He has been married for 27 years to his wife, Helena. They have two children. Juan who is 19 and Victoria is 23. Vice President for Public Affairs: Martha Ashley-Stewart After receiving her B.A. from The Ohio State University, Dr. Ashley-Stewart worked as a consultant for Proctor & Gamble in Cincinnati, OH. She then worked at Oberlin College for eight years as the Honors Program Coordinator and an Assistant Professor of English. Six years ago, Dr. Ashley-Stewart was hired as the Director of the Honors Program. Two years ago, she was promoted to Vice President for Public Affairs given her established public relations expertise after the sudden death of her predecessor. Dr. Ashley-Stewart recently married the Athletic Director and now is the stepmother to three teenage daughters. Vice President for Administration: John Jamison Dr. Jamison taught high school in the Atlanta school system for eleven years before going back to school to obtain his M.B.A. and ultimately, his Ph.D. He served as Director of Human Resources at Georgia Institute of Technology for five years and served as the Assistant to the President at Auburn University for six years. Dr. Jamison has been employed at Oconee for the past six years and is most fondly known as J.J. throughout the campus community. Dr. Jamison has never been married. Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students: Fredrick DeWitt Dr. DeWitt worked for four years as a resident director at Ball State University. He served as the Director of Housing at Warren Wilson College (NC) for six years and returned to Oconee College as the Associate Dean of Students before the College administration was restructured. He has been in his current position for the past ten years. Dr. DeWitt has been married to his wife, Gail, for 25 years and has two children, ages 23 and 21. Dean, School of Education: LaSonya Scott Dr. Scott taught elementary school for four years in River City public school before going back to school to obtain her M.A. and Ed.D. She developed a special education curriculum for her school district before becoming a faculty member at Oconee College. Dr. Scott received tenure at Oconee in 2001 and was appointed Dean of the School of Education in 2004. She has never been married, but is currently dating an attorney in River City. Dean, School of Business: Charles Aquino (ah-kee-no) Dr. Aquino was employed full-time at a local bank and served as an adjunct faculty member at Oconee College for six years before obtaining his M.B.A. from the University of Georgia. Upon completion, he then worked at Georgia Southern University as an Assistant Professor for eight years. He has been employed as the Dean of the School of Business for the past eight years. Dr. Aquino recently married for the second time. His current wife, Chandra, is a faculty member in the School of Education. He has one daughter from his first marriage, age 15, and two children from his second – one son age 8 and one daughter age 5. Dean, School of Arts, Humanities and Social Science: Joseph Montgomery Dr. Montgomery taught at Radford University (VA) for four years before moving to River City and becoming the Assistant Dean of the School of Arts, Humanities and Social Science. He served in this capacity for five years before being named Dean in 2005. Dr. Montgomery is not married and is an activist in the local AIDS Coalition. He is the advisor to the Student Government Association. Dean, School of Mathematics and Science: Cecil Orlando Dr. Orlando worked for a private firm for ten years prior to becoming a faculty member at the University of Minnesota. He worked there for 15 years where he earned tenure as professor. He was recruited by Oconee College to help develop several academic and outreach programs in the school. He has been Dean of the School for Mathematics and Science for the past nine years. Dr. Orlando, along with his wife, Camille, are very involved in the community and donate much of their time to Habitat for Humanity. Dean, School of Nursing: Mary Ann Avery Dr. Avery worked in the Intensive Care Unit at a local hospital for nine years before returning to school and obtaining her M.S.N. She worked at Grady Hospital in the Emergency Department for 11 years, serving as Head Nurse for her tenure. Dr. Avery then obtained her Ph.D. in Nursing. She was hired at Oconee College as an Assistant Professor and was promoted through the ranks to Dean. She has been the Dean of School of Nursing for the past three years. Each year, she escorts undergraduate students on a Maymester summer excursion to Central America. Dr. Avery is very active in the River City community-based outreach programs and she currently serves as the president of the local chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW). Dean of Enrollment Management: Kenneth Lansing Mr. Lansing worked as a financial aid counselor at Florida State University. While working at the University, he completed his M.B.A. He was promoted to Assistant Director of Financial Aid after five years of service. He served in that role for seven additional years before accepting the position of Assistant Director of Enrollment Management at Oconee College. Mr. Lansing has served as the Dean of Enrollment Management for the past 11 years. He has been married for 28 years and has three children (two sons ages 26 and 24, and a 23 year old daughter). Director of Auxiliary Services: David Davenport Mr. Davenport worked for the Marriott International Corporation for 12 years before accepting a position as Manager of Food Services at Oconee College. He held this position for seven years before becoming the Director of Auxiliary Services. He is divorced with no children. Director of the Counseling and Learning Center: Kim Lee Dr. Lee worked for four years as a counselor at a women’s clinic in Roanoke, VA. Before attending the University of Houston to obtain her Ph.D. She served as the Assistant Director of the Counseling Center at Southern Methodist University for five years and has been at Oconee College for two years. She is married to Hun Lee, a biologist. They have two children – a four year old daughter and a seven year old son. Director of Career Planning and Placement Center: Sheryl Mae Essex After earning her master’s degree, Dr. Essex worked at the University of Tampa as a counselor for the Office of Career Services. From there, she obtained a senior career counselor position at the University of Washington where she obtained her Ed.D. degree. She was then promoted to Associate Director of Marketing and Development and continued working at Washington for six additional years. She began working at Oconee as the Director of Career Planning and Placement four years ago. She is married to Howard Essex, a freelance sports journalist. They have one eight-year old daughter. Director of Health Services: Julia Chambers Dr. Chambers worked at a Sexual Assault Crisis Center for three years in Detroit (MI) after earning her bachelor’s degree. After receiving her M.D., she worked for five years as the Coordinator of Health Education at the University of Chicago. She was then offered a position as the Assistant Director of Health Education. After three years, she then accepted a position as the Assistant Director of Health Services at Williams College (MA). After serving in this position for seven years, she and her partner, Eileen, moved to River City to be closer to family. She currently works at River City Hospital and serves as the part-time Director of Health Services at Oconee College. Chief of Campus Police: Larry Jay Adams After graduating from Georgia State University, Mr. Adams worked for the local sheriff’s department. He came to Oconee College in 1983 to work with Campus Security as the Assistant Director. He was promoted to Director in 1990. In 1997, he was appointed as the Chief of Campus Police. Chief Adams has been married to his wife, Sandy Jean, for 28 years. They have two sons, ages 24 and 22. Director of Student Activities: Kai Christan Ms. Christan worked at the University of Tennessee for three years in Residence Life and two years at Springfield College (IL) as the Assistant Director of Student Activities. She moved to River City with her fiancé, Thomas, who is a broker in Eastwest. She has served as the Director of Student Activities for the past three years. An October wedding is planned. Director of Special Programs: Philip Stacey Mr. Stacy worked as a hall director for three years at the University of Memphis (TN). He then went to Winthrop University where he served as Assistant Director of Multicultural Student Life for five years. He has been in his current position for the past two years. He is the advisor to the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity collegiate chapter. Mr. Stacey just recent married his wife, Tasha. She is a local entrepreneur and alumna of Oconee College. |