Atlanta, Georgia – On Thursday, November 21, 2024, Spelman College’s president – Helene D. Gayle, MD, M.P.H. – steps down after her leave of absence.
“I thank the larger Spelman community for this magnificent opportunity to serve as president. I have thoroughly enjoyed interacting with the outstanding students and future world leaders who have chosen to attend Spelman College,” Dr. Gayle said in the statement the college released. “I look forward to my next chapter.”
Spelman College was founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary and became Spelman College in 1924. Now a global leader in the education of women of African descent, Spelman is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) and is a member of the Atlanta University Center Consortium. The student body comprises more than 2,100 students from 43 states and 10 foreign countries. Dedicated to academic excellence in the liberal arts and sciences and the intellectual, creative, ethical and leadership development of its students, Spelman empowers women to engage the many cultures of the world and inspires a commitment to positive social change through service.
The college is working on a plan to select the college’s next president. It has appointed Rosalind “Roz” Brewer as its interim president. “I join the trustees in extending my gratitude to Dr. Gayle for her service to this amazing institution,” Brewer said in a video announcement. “I’m also excited to continue my service as your interim president.” Brewer is the former chair of the school’s board of trustees and a part-owner of the Atlanta Falcons football team.
Gayle became Spelman’s president in 2022 after former president Mary Schmidt Campbell retired. She was president of the Chicago Community Trust, one of the nation’s largest community foundations. She is also an epidemiologist who spent decades fighting AIDS and HIV and led an international anti-poverty group. Brewer spent twelve years as chair of the Spelman’s board of trustees, where she worked with three Spelman presidents and chaired the two most successful fundraising campaigns in the college’s history. She also previously served as president and chief executive officer of Walgreens Boots Alliance, chief operating officer of Starbucks and chief executive officer of Sam’s Club.
Past Spelman College Presidents:
Sophia B. Packard, co-founder and first president;
Harriet E. Giles, co-founder and second President;
Lucy Hale Tapley, third president;
Florence M. Read, fourth president;
Albert E. Manley, Ed.D., fifth president;
Donald M. Stewart, Ph.D., sixth president;
Johnnetta B. Cole, Ph.D., seventh president;
Audrey F. Manley, MD, eighth president;
Beverly Daniel Tatum, Ph.D., ninth president;
Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., tenth president; and
Helene D. Gayle, MD, M.P.H., eleventh president.
