Ohio State’s Dodge Georgina selected as UI chief diversity officer

Georgina Dodge, Ph.D., an assistant vice provost for the Office of Minority Affairs at Ohio State University, has been named the University of Iowa’s chief diversity officer (CDO) and associate vice president (AVP), effective July 1, pending approval by the Board of Regents, State of Iowa. In her new position, Dodge will also be appointed an adjunct associate professor of English.

“Inclusiveness and diversity -– of thought, expertise, culture and personal experience -– are hallmarks of a vibrant university campus,” UI President Sally Mason said. “Georgina Dodge brings to this key position a breadth and depth of experience that I’m confident will serve the university well in these areas.

“I also want to thank Dr. Nicole Nisly for serving as interim chief diversity officer during this search,” Mason said. “Her dedication and work ensured continuity for this important office during the search.” Wallace Loh, UI provost and executive vice president, said, “Dr. Dodge’s bicultural background in Asia and the United States will enable her to help integrate global diversity and domestic diversity." He added, "I very much appreciate the great work that Dr. Nisly did as Interim CDO.” The search for the CDO/AVP was co-chaired by Keri Hornbuckle, professor and chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the UI College of Engineering, and Mettie Thomopulos, health services administrator in the UI Department of Internal Medicine.

As CDO/AVP, Dodge will lead and coordinate the university’s efforts in all aspects of diversity, inclusion, educational and employment equity, affirmative action, cultural understanding and competency, and civil and human rights. As CDO, she will report directly to the president and is a member of the president’s cabinet. As AVP, Dodge will report to the executive vice president and provost, is a member of the provost’s cabinet and sits on the Council of Deans.

Dodge earned her B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of California, Irvine, and her Ph.D. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles.

As assistant vice provost of Ohio State University’s Office of Minority Affairs, a position she’s held since 2005, Dodge has provided leadership in support of the success of minority students, faculty and staff. In that role she identified and established new academic collaborations to promote diversity and excellence; convened and directed a campus Bias Assessment and Response Team; helped supervise about 80 staff members across the state to recruit and retain underrepresented minorities; and helped develop curriculum to establish majors and minors in African American Studies, Asian American Studies, Disability Studies, Latino/a Studies, Native American Studies and Sexuality Studies.

From 2002-2005, she served as director of Ohio State’s Department of African American and African Studies Community Extension Center, and from 1996-2002 she was an assistant professor in the Department of English. She also served in the Navy from 1979-1985, working as an electronics technician on communications, radar and meteorological equipment and as a liaison with the Japanese military and government while stationed at Atsugi, Japan.

She is a member of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, the Modern Language Association, The Society for the Study of Multi-Ethnic Literatures of the U.S., the Association of Asian American Studies, the American Studies Association and the National Council of Teachers of English.

view Dodge’s vita in PDF format www.uiowa.edu/~cdoavp/candidates/CVs/gdodge.pdf.

STORY SOURCE: University of Iowa News Services, 300 Plaza Centre One, Iowa City, Iowa 52242-2500

MEDIA CONTACT: Tom Moore, 319-356-3945, thomas-moore@uiowa.edu