Belltower under cloudy skies.

Dr. Frances D. Graham will serve a two-year appointment as interim director of NC State’s African American Cultural Center. Dr. Graham has served in higher education administrative roles at North Carolina Central University, North Carolina State University, and the University of Illinois. Originally from Champaign, Illinois, she is the first member of her family to attend college, earning both an undergraduate and a doctorate degree from the University of Illinois and a master’s degree from Howard University.

During her 28 years in higher education, Graham has been appointed to various upper-level administrative posts in large and mid­-size institutions. She has served as an associate vice chancellor for both student affairs and academic affairs, interim vice chancellor for student affairs at North Carolina Central, associate vice provost for gender affairs, and director of the Women’s Center at NC State. At the University of Illinois, she held the position of specialist in education in its Counseling Center. Her experience also extends to faculty positions in which she taught black feminist theory, feminist theory, African American literature and women’s history at Duke University, NC State, University of Illinois and Parkland Community College.

Fully engaged in the higher education profession, Graham serves and has served the profession beyond the requirements of her official positions. Currently, she is on the Board of Directors for BRIDGES, an academic leadership program for women in higher education in North Carolina. She has been a member of a career coaching team with Dress for Success and was on the National Women’s Studies Journal advisory board for three terms. One of her long-term career goals is to develop leadership forums for Black women in higher education.