Gordon College Academic Dean Kina Mallard Named New Provost at Carson-Newman College

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 9, 2008

MEDIA CONTACT
Jo Kadlecek
Office of College Communications
978.867.4752
[email protected]

WENHAM, MA- Dr. Kina Mallard, academic dean at Gordon College, has been named provost at Carson-Newman College in Tennessee. She will begin her tenure there in January.

Set in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, Carson-Newman College is a Christian liberal arts college in the Baptist tradition, and a fellow member with Gordon College of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU). Its mission--"to promote open intellectual inquiry and deeper spiritual maturity"--is shaped by the historic Baptist distinctives of "religious liberty, personal responsibility and compassion." As provost, Mallard will give leadership to the academic programs there as well as admissions, financial aid and campus computing.

She will also be returning home to East Tennessee. Carson-Newman College is located only 25 miles from Knoxville, where Mallard's mother lives. She will join new president Randall O'Brien, former provost of Baylor University, in giving leadership to the campus. Mallard was aggressively recruited for this position because of her excellent reputation in Christian higher education.

"On the one hand, I am delighted that Kina has received this opportunity," Gordon College Provost Mark Sargent said. "On the other hand, I will sincerely miss working with her. In her three and a half years here, she has been enthusiastically committed to faculty development and has worked in many ways to strengthen teaching and learning. She has built a Dean's Council of department chairs and has helped enrich the role of the chairs. She has encouraged curricular innovations, guided faculty in the early stages of their careers, and made improvements to our advising programs. I will miss her friendship, good counsel, and ability to find humor and inspiration in the work we have shared, even in the difficult moments. I am confident she will flourish as Carson-Newman's provost."   

"Throughout my tenure in Christian higher education, I have been fortunate to work with and learn from excellent administrators and faculty," Mallard said. "I am thankful to have been surrounded by faculty and staff who think deeply about their faith, their academic discipline and critical global issues, and who care deeply about students and each other. My collaborative work with Provost Mark Sargent has been the most fulfilling partnership in my career. I am thankful for his wisdom, his encouragement and his friendship."

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