University names William Lewis vice president for Office of Diversity and Inclusion

30 Aug 2010

William T. Lewis, Sr., director of the Office of Institutional Diversity at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts, has been named vice president for the Office for Diversity and Inclusion at Virginia Tech. He will assume his new responsibilities Sept. 7.

Lewis succeeds Karen Eley Sanders, who has served as interim vice president since December of 2009.

As vice president for the Office for Diversity and Inclusion, Lewis will provide leadership in advancing the university's goal of embracing diversity in pursuit of inclusive excellence. Lewis will collaborate with the campus, alumni, local, and global communities to ensure that Virginia Tech continues to be an inclusive community that nurtures learning and growth for all of its constituencies.

“Dr. Lewis’ familiarity with the Inclusive Excellence model ensures that the progress that we’ve made in the diversity arena will be maintained and enhanced, said Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger. His enthusiasm regarding the implementation of the Diversity Strategic Plan will serve as a catalyst for university-wide focus on diversity and inclusion efforts.”

"I am truly excited to be apart of the Hokie family." said Lewis. "There has been much done at Virginia Tech to ensure that diversity is inclusive, and I am looking forward to the opportunity to continue that legacy."

As director of the Office of Institutional Diversity at Bridgewater State College, Lewis developed a university-wide strategic plan to enhance the university’s focus on inclusive excellence. He developed the Diversity and Inclusion Research Institute and the Teaching for Inclusive Excellence program to promote faculty engagement in diversity efforts. Prior to serving at Bridgewater State College, Lewis served as the director of Diversity Initiatives at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. In this capacity, he developed the Junior Executive Institute, a national pre-college program for high school sophomores and juniors.

Lewis earned a doctoral degree from Indiana University, and a master’s degree and a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University Purdue University. He also completed the management development program from Harvard Institutes for Higher Education.

Lewis is a member of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, and a former member of the New England Resource Center for Higher Education Multicultural Think Tank.

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.