GEORGETOWN, KY. – Georgetown College named Campbell University Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Dwaine Greene its 24th new president after approval from its board of trustees on Monday.
The Watauga County native and Campbell alumnus will assume his role as head of the small, private Baptist college on Oct. 21. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown College has a total undergraduate enrollment of 1,273 and post graduate enrollment of 545 students.
“I hold deep respect for what Georgetown has accomplished during its many decades,” said Greene. “Quality academics in concert with faith commitments is what resonates with me both personally and professionally. Joining such a worthy endeavor with fine colleagues at Georgetown will be a high honor. I am humbled by the opportunity.”
Greene was a 1979 Magna Cum Laude graduate of Campbell University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in religion. He received his master’s in New Testament from Wake Forest University and completed his doctorate in New Testament and early Christianity from the University of Virginia. He returned to his alma mater in June 2001 to join the administration after a serving as a religion professor, department chair, provost, dean of faculty and for a brief period, acting president, at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, N.C.
Campbell University President Jerry Wallace said he will miss his colleague who’s helped oversee dramatic change at Campbell over the past decade.
“I applaud the selection of Dwaine Greene as the president of Georgetown College,” Wallace said in a statement Tuesday. “In every respect, Dwaine has achieved the attributes necessary to be an effective president — education, experience, common sense and spiritual maturity. I will miss him. His void will be felt in my heart and throughout our campus.
“Georgetown will be in good hands.”
News of Greene’s appointment was met with positive words from faculty and administration at Georgetown College. Harold Tallant, a Georgetown professor of history who served on the presidential search team, voiced the committee’s unequivocal support for the new president.
“Dr. Greene has a strong record of success as an academic leader, not just in the nuts-and-bolts details of running a college but also in the larger world of higher education at the national and international level,” said Tallant. “He is the leader we need now, and I am delighted he has agreed to serve at Georgetown College. Dwaine is an ideal person to be the public face of Georgetown.”
Greene is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion. Of particular significance is his involvement with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. He lists among his hobbies and interests assorted sports, outdoor activities, reading, and piano. During his undergraduate years at Campbell, he played baseball and has been a vocal advocate of the baseball program, especially during its recent back-to-back 40-plus-win seasons.
He is married to the former Carolyn Michael, a Campbell alumna whom he met while a student. The couple has two daughters, Patricia and Meredith, both of whom received undergraduate degrees from Campbell. Patricia is a graduate of Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, Va., and is pursuing a career in ministry. Meredith is pursuing a doctorate in molecular medicine at Wake Forest University.
Georgetown College, the first Baptist College west of the Allegheny Mountains, was chartered in 1829. Distinguished alumni include five Rhodes Scholars, 41 college and university presidents, two Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award winners, 23 Fulbright Scholars (since 1989) and numerous other successful graduates who provide distinctive leadership in business, medicine, law, education, communications, ministry and the arts.
Some information in this article courtesy of Georgetown College