Keynote Sessions
Acclaimed scholar, psychologist, and president emerita of Spelman College, Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum will be in conversation with Dr. Sharon Fries-Britt, professor of higher education at the University of Maryland. Together, they will explore the intersections of race, leadership, and higher education’s role in sustaining democracy—drawing from Dr. Tatum’s latest book, "Peril and Promise: College Leadership in Turbulent Times."
Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum is the author of the New York Times best-selling book, “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?” and Other Conversations About Race as well as Can We Talk About Race? and Other Conversations in an Era of School Resegregation. In September,
her next book, Peril and Promise: College Leadership in Turbulent Times, was published, delivering thought-provoking perspectives on the contemporary challenges and opportunities facing higher education in a time of rapid social change. An award-winning psychologist widely known for her expertise on race relations and as a thought leader in higher education, she is president emerita of Spelman College. Her thirteen
years as the president of Spelman College (2002-2015) were marked by innovation and growth and her visionary leadership was recognized in 2013 with the Carnegie Academic Leadership Award. In spring 2017 she was the Mimi and Peter E. Haas Distinguished Visitor at Stanford
University. During the academic year 2022-23, she served as interim president at Mount Holyoke College.
The combination of her expertise and her engaging, conversational style make Tatum a sought-after speaker on the topic of higher education leadership, strategies for creating inclusive campus and work environments, and the impact of race in the classroom. Dr. Tatum holds a B.A. degree in psychology from Wesleyan University, and M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies from Hartford International University (formerly Hartford Seminary). She was the 2014 recipient of the American Psychological Association Award for Outstanding Lifetime Contributions to Psychology.
"Things We Imagined" is a digital and visual scholarship project that brings together artistic portraits, interviews, and essays from Black college and university faculty from the "Imagined Futures" Project. The project’s primary aims include using speculative approaches to increase our collective visibility, provide new models for self-authorship, and new grammars of Black futurity and Black life-making within and beyond the academy.
Dr. Candace N. Hall is a faculty member in the higher education and student affairs program at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. Dr. Hall's her research focuses on recruitment, retention, and support of faculty across institutional types to understand faculty job satisfaction. In 2023, Dr. Hall created and produced the award-winning documentary "clusterluck," which highlights the experiences of Black faculty and unpacks what community means for Black scholars within their departments at predominantly white institutions.
Dr. Charles H.F. Davis III is a faculty member in the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education and director of the Campus Abolition Research Lab at the University of Michigan. Dr. Davis' research and teaching broadly focus on the racialized consequences of higher education on society and the life-affirming possibilities of postsecondary institutions to improve the material conditions of everyday Black people. Dr. Davis has written, photographed, and produced several multidisciplinary projects to include his 2016 documentary film "Saving Tomorrow, Today."
In this address, President Zamani-Gallaher challenges us to consider it is not just about observing the arc of progress; it’s about recognizing the architects behind it—the imaginative individuals and institutions that build, resist, and reimagine our educational landscape in the pursuit of justice. Underscoring creative work as a legitimate academic contribution, she asserts is an effective form of public pedagogy and scholarship. Zamani-Gallaher calls us to envision the next bend in the journey of higher education, inspired by the diverse voices and innovative approaches that challenge the status quo.
Dr. Eboni M. Zamani-Gallaher began her tenure as the Renée and Richard Goldman Dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education on May 1, 2024. An accomplished scholar, her work focuses on equitable participation in higher education; transfer, access, and retention policies; minoritized student populations in marginalized institutional contexts; and racial equity and campus climate in postsecondary education pathways.