Vermont Business Magazine Champlain College today announced that Monique M Taylor, PhD, has been named its new Provost and Chief Academic Officer. She will begin in late summer. Dr Taylor comes to Champlain College from the New York Institute of Technology, where she has served as the Campus Dean and Executive Director for the school’s Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates programs.
“We are excited to have Dr. Taylor join Champlain College at this pivotal time,” said Champlain’s President Benjamin Ola. Akande. “We believe her extensive experience in academic leadership, strategic planning, and teaching makes her an excellent fit with Champlain. In particular, Dr. Taylor’s global outlook and strong background in international education will help Champlain expand and strengthen its robust and immersive study abroad programs. We know her experience, and her understanding of Champlain’s community, will make her a tremendous team member in fulfilling Champlain’s academic mission as part of the Champlain 2030 strategic plan.”
Dr. Taylor has spent time in the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia, where she has held additional positions as Campus Dean of New York Tech’s program in Nanjing, China; Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs at the Mexico City campus of Alliant International University; Visiting Lecturer at Al Quds University in the Palestinian city of Ramallah; Associate Professor of Sociology at Occidental College in Los Angeles; and Teaching Fellow at Harvard University in Cambridge. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Sociology from Harvard University and a B.A. in Sociology from Yale.
“I am thrilled to join the Champlain College community,” Taylor said. “From the moment I became acquainted with Champlain, I fell in love with the way it embraces innovation, takes risks and seeks to stay ahead of a fast-changing world. It’s a privilege to come to a place where those values are central to advancing the future of an academic mission.”
Dr. Taylor succeeds Dr. Leslie Averill who held the position of Interim Vice President of Academic Affairs for one year and will continue her role at the College as Chief Operating Officer.
“On behalf of all of us at Champlain, I deeply appreciate Dr. Averill’s leadership as Vice President of Academic Affairs over the past year,” added Dr. Akande. “Dr. Averill is a bold, creative and generative thinker. We know she will continue her many contributions to Champlain as Chief Operating Officer, working to capitalize on opportunities for innovation, growth, and efficiency across our institution as we bring to life our Champlain 2030 strategic plan.”
Dr. Taylor will make the move to Burlington with her husband, Ken Ellingwood, a veteran journalist and author, and the couple’s daughter, Selma, a rising college freshman. Taylor said she looks forward to the many outdoor activities that Vermont has to offer and to Burlington’s free spirit.
About Champlain College
Founded in 1878, Champlain College is a small, not-for-profit, private college in Burlington, Vermont, with additional campuses in Montreal, Canada, and Dublin, Ireland. Champlain offers a traditional undergraduate experience from its beautiful campus overlooking Lake Champlain. Since 1993, Champlain has also offered industry-focused undergraduate and graduate programs fully online to working adults, and, through its truED workforce development program, to leading organizations across the country. Champlain's distinctive career-driven approach to higher education embodies the notion that true learning occurs when information and experience come together to create knowledge. Champlain College is included in the Princeton Review's The Best 386 Colleges: 2021 Edition, and was named the best private online college by Intelligent.com in 2020. Champlain was ranked among the top 100 Regional Universities in the North and named a "Most Innovative School" for the sixth year in a row by U.S. News & World Report. For more information, visit champlain.edu.
Source: Burlington, VT (April 21, 2021) – Champlain College