Academic leadership
Dr. Gwen Price
Senior Vice President and Provost
Gwen Price, Ph.D., a recognized educator with over 30 years experience in secondary and higher eduucation, is UA's senior vice president and provost.
Reporting to the president, Price’s responsibilities will include, but are not limited to:
- leading strategic academic planning with the colleges, departments and schools;
- actively participating in shared governance with the Faculty Senate, University Council and the Council of Deans;
- engaging with advisory councils, corporations, local and national foundations, donors and community organizations to expand and enhance academic offerings and units; and
- promoting student success and fostering the creation of innovative programs and services.
As senior vice president, she is the most senior administrator reporting to the president.
Price joined UA in December 2022 as the senior vice provost for academic and faculty affairs in the Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) serving as the liaison between faculty and OAA, providing oversight for a wide range of strategic initiatives including accreditation and academic policies, as well as faculty hiring, development and support. She worked in collaboration with the deans and department chairs, Faculty Senate and University Council, among others, to foster shared governance and support the success of students, faculty and academic programs. Price also coordinated interdisciplinary and experiential learning initiatives and activities, and facilitated the development of high-quality online academic, credential-based and continuing education programs to increase enrollment and generate revenue, among other responsibilities.
Prior to her arrival at UA, Price spent 15 years in higher education in Pennsylvania, beginning her career as a faculty member in the Middle & Secondary Education Department at Edinboro University, within the PA State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) where she earned tenure and promotion and worked extensively in the area of accreditation. She then transitioned to administration at Clarion University where she was integral to the re-establishment of the School of Education of which she became dean. Just prior to joining UA, she held the position of dean of the College of Education and associate provost for students & graduate studies for PennWest University, the institution formed by the integration of three PASSHE universities.
Price earned a B.A. in chemistry from Bucknell University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University. Prior to her time in higher education, she taught high school chemistry and physics for 15 years.
Price will remain as the interim dean of the Graduate School until a replacement is named.
Dr. Fedearia Nicholson-Sweval
Vice Provost of Student Pathways and Dean of the Williams Honors College
Dr. Fedearia Nicholson-Sweval is dean of the Williams Honors College and vice provost of student pathways in the Office of Academic Affairs. Fedearia will lead efforts to attract and retain students who enter the University of Akron. Students come to UA via different pathways and with varied levels of preparation. Students can be young high schoolers or older adults, require augmentation of basic math or English skills, or ready to launch into an Honors thesis project. She is responsible for understanding and supporting each of these student groups so that they progress and graduate in a timely way.
Nicholson-Sweval’s experience and leadership in promoting diversity and equity in higher education was also gained through Northeast Ohio Medical University and Ursuline College, where she served in various multicultural affairs positions. Prior, Nicholson-Sweval worked in the office of the dean of student affairs at Cuyahoga Community College.
Nicholson-Sweval is active on several community boards, serving as vice president of the board for Project Grad Akron, chair of the board for Heart-to-Heart Leadership, a member of the Akron Urban League and a member of the inclusion committee for the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce. She’s also the recipient of many awards and recognitions, such as the Harold K. Stubbs Humanitarian Award for Education, the American Council of Education Ohio Women’s Network Professional Development Scholarship Award and the Akron Chamber of Commerce’s 30 for the Future Award.
An Akron resident, Nicholson-Sweval earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Studies and Public Affairs, a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, all from UA.
Dr. Suzanne Bausch
Vice President for Research and Business Engagement
Dr. Suzanne Bausch is an accomplished researcher and experienced administrator who joined The University of Akron in August 2022 as the vice president for research & business engagement, the dean of the Graduate School, and The University of Akron president's designee as president of its Research Foundation.
She oversees The University of Akron’s Graduate School, Research Foundation, and Offices of Research and Technology Transfer. She is a primary point of contact for businesses interested in collaborative agreements and partnerships with The University of Akron.
Bausch previously served as associate dean for research and graduate affairs followed by vice dean of the College of Science & Mathematics and School of Health Professions at Rowan University. In these roles she facilitated an increase in the college's externally funded research portfolio and expansion of its graduate programs. She also led federally funded university-wide interdisciplinary grants focused on diversity, equity and inclusion.
Bausch’s sixteen-year independent faculty career was spent at the Uniformed Service University School of Medicine, the nation’s military medical school, where she ran an internationally recognized and continuously funded neuropharmacology and epilepsy research laboratory. She served for seven years as vice chair and a stint as acting/interim chair of Pharmacology.
Bausch worked as a radiologic and MRI technologist before receiving her bachelor’s degree in Chemistry with a minor in Biology from Metropolitan State College of Denver, Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Washington, and postdoctoral training in Neuroscience from Duke University.
Dr. Stephen McKellips
Vice Provost for Enrollment Management
Dr. Stephen McKellips is vice provost for enrollment management in the Office of Academic Affairs.
Dr. Sheldon Wrice
Vice President of Inclusion and Equity and Chief Diversity Officer
In this critical position within the University administration, Wrice will provide strategic leadership for campus diversity, program oversight, diversity advising and mentoring, community relations and outreach, and policy duties that result in a learning and workplace environment that is welcoming and supportive to all.
As chief diversity officer, Wrice supervises the Office of Inclusion and Equity, Office of Multicultural Development, Multicultural Center and the Women's and Gender Resource Center. The Office of Accessibility has dual reporting lines to Student Affairs and the Office of Inclusion and Equity.
Wrice earned his Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration in 1995, Master of Science in Technical Education and Master of Arts in Multicultural Education in 1994, Master of Arts in Urban Studies in 2013 and Master of Public Administration in 2014, all from UA. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from South Carolina State University in 1988 and a Master of Library Science from Clark Atlanta University in 1990.
Inside UA
CONTACT THE OFFICE OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
Location:
Buchtel Hall (map)
302 Buchtel Common
Akron, OH 44325-4703