Malawian appointed vice chancellor of USIU-A
Paul Tiyambe Zeleza, whose novel Smouldering Charcoal is part of the senior secondary school literature curriculum, has been appointed Vice Chancellor of the United States International University-Africa (USIU-A), with effect from January 1 2016.
According to a statement from the institution’s Board of Trustees, Zeleza’s appointment was made today after a rigorous, extensive recruitment process which kicked off a few months ago.
Zeleza is expected to replace Professor Freida Brown, who has served the University for the last 21 years.
“Dr Zeleza will work in close alignment with the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and other members of the Management Council, to oversee a broad spectrum of activities including the four academic schools, student affairs, admissions, registration, library, faculty development, information technology, operations and the implementation of the strategic plan,” the statement reads in part.
The University’s Chancellor, Manu Chandaria, said all parties are committed to helping Zeleza to succeed.
On his part, Brown described Zeleza as a distinguished academic and manager who has much to offer the University at all levels.
“I wish him every success in continuing the development of the United States International University-Africa and its work,” said Brown.
Currently, Zeleza is Vice President of Academic Affairs and Professor of History at Quinnipiac University, Hamden, Connecticut in the United States of America.
He joined Quinnipiac after serving as Dean of the Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts as well as Professor of History and African American Studies at Loyola Marymount University.
Prior to that, Zeleza was Head of the Department of African-American Studies and the Liberal Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor at the University of Illinois, Chicago.
He also taught at the Pennsylvania State University, and was Director of the Centre for African Studies and Professor of History and African Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Zeleza has published more than 300 journal articles, book chapters, reviews, short stories and online essays and authored or edited 27 books, several of which have won international awards including Africa’s most prestigious book prize, the Noma Award, for his books A Modern Economic History of Africa (1993) and Manufacturing African Studies and Crises (1997).
His most recent books include In Search of African Diasporas: Testimonies and Encounters (2012) and Africa’s Resurgence: Domestic, Global and Diaspora Transformations (2014) and Transformations in Global Higher Education (forthcoming).
Zeleza has also presented nearly 250 keynote addresses, papers, and public lectures at leading universities and international conferences in 31 countries. He has also served on the editorial boards of more than two dozen journals and book series and edited a personal online magazine, The Zeleza Post (2004-2012).
