Professor Rebecca Ropers-Huilman has been appointed chair for the Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development (OLPD) effective August this year. Ropers-Huilman follows Darwin Hendel, who is stepping down after chairing the department since April 2007.
Ropers-Huilman has been a professor of higher education in the department since August 2007. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in educational administration with a concentration in higher education. Her research interests relate primarily to race and gender in higher education, and change agents in postsecondary contexts. She is also editor of Feminist Formations. Prior to coming to the University of Minnesota, she was a faculty member at Louisiana State University and held positions there as director of women’s and gender studies, director of the Women’s Center, and coordinator of the higher education program.

“We appreciate Darwin Hendel’s service during the transition of OLPD,” said Dean Jean Quam. “And I am very pleased that Professor Ropers-Huilman has agreed to serve as the next chair. I am excited by her vision for the department in general and higher education in particular. She is an inclusive leader who has thoughtfully approached her decision to accept this position by conducting listening sessions with faculty, staff, and students.”