The Academic Leadership Institute was founded by a group of highly experienced academic leaders who recognized a need in higher education to better prepare and connect rising leaders. Read more about our team below.
Earl Lewis, Ph.D.
ALI Co-Founder
Noted social historian, award-winning author, and educational leader, Earl Lewis, is the founding director of the University of Michigan Center for Social Solutions, as well as the Thomas C. Holt Distinguished University Professor of History, Afroamerican and African Studies, and public policy. Lewis is president emeritus of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (2013-18), former Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and provost at Emory University, and former Vice Provost and Dean of the Rackham School of Graduate Studies at the University of Michigan.
Currently
- Director, Center for Social Solutions, University of Michigan
- Thomas C. Holt Distinguished University Professor, University of Michigan
Previously
- President, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
- Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs; Provost, Emory University
- Vice Provost; Dean, Rackham School of Graduate Studies, University of Michigan
Dwight A. McBride, Ph.D.
ALI Co-Founder
With nearly three decades in higher education, Dwight A. McBride is an experienced leader and accomplished educator and author. Throughout his career, Dr. McBride has encouraged innovation in scholarship and teaching, launched initiatives to build interdisciplinary strength around global challenges, created environments that foster inclusive excellence, and expanded opportunities for experiential learning. Prior to his appointment at Washington University, Dr. McBride was the President at The New School, where he was also a University Professor.
Currently
- Senior Advisor to the Chancellor, Washington University
- Gerald Early Distinguished Professor of African and African American Studies, Washington University
Previously
- President and University Professor, The New School
- Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Emory University
- Asa Griggs Candler Professor of African American Studies, Distinguished Affiliated Professor of English, Emory University
- Dean; Associate Provost for Graduate Education; Daniel Hale Williams Professor of African American Studies, English, and Performance Studies, Northwestern University
- Dean, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago
