Hilbert College has named Dr. Todd Harris as Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students. Dr. Harris begins his new role at Hilbert on August 1st. “Following a national search, we found that Todd’s inherent vision, goals and charisms align very well with our Franciscan values and our community culture at Hilbert Community. I am please and excited to welcome him to our Senior Staff and know that he will make valuable contributions as our VP for Student Life and Dean of Students” said Hilbert College Provost and Executive Vice President, Kristine Still PhD.
Prior to joining Hilbert College, Dr. Harris served as the Senior Associate Dean of Students at Methodist University in North Carolina. In his role, he had direct oversight for Housing and Residence Life, Counseling Services, Health Services, Campus Recreation and Intramurals, Student Activities, Fraternity and Sorority Life, New Student Orientation, and Student Conduct. Dr. Harris was instrumental in improving support for student success by developing a campus-wide case management team. He also led the effort in collecting wellbeing data through Wake Forest University’s wellbeing collaborative. This inspired a stronger commitment toward promoting a culture of wellbeing on campus. Dr. Harris also developed and ran a professional manager’s certificate program for students, staff, and faculty that provided the community with management and leadership seminars.
Before his time at Methodist University, Dr. Harris held leadership positions in Housing and Residence Life at several institutions. He oversaw the development of an inaugural housing program in Georgia. As Associate Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life at Lake Forest College, he doubled the size of the professional staff, developed living-learning communities, and created standard operating procedures that improved safety structures on campus. Dr. Harris began his professional residence life work at Georgetown University where he managed several residential communities and created a residence hall governance system serving over 6,000 residents.
Dr. Harris earned a B.A. in Public Relations and M.Ed. in Counseling with a concentration in College Student Development from North Carolina State University. He received his Ed.D. from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Higher Education.