Five Black Scholars Appointed to New Faculty Positions

Sonya Smith has been named executive director of the Research Institute Autonomy at Howard University in Washington, D.C. She joined the faculty at Howard University in 1995, and became the first woman tenured professor in the university’s department of mechanical engineering. In addition to her teaching appointment, she serves as director of the Atmospheric Sciences Program within the College of Engineering and Architecture. Dr. Smith is a graduate of Valdosta State University in Georgia, where she majored in mathematics with an emphasis in computer science. She was the first Black woman to receive a Ph.D in mechanical and aerospace engineering from the University of Virginia. Asha Shepard has been promoted to associate professor of economics with tenure at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland. A member of the Goucher College faculty since 2018, he also serves as director of the master’s degree program in applied policy analysis. As a economist, he specializes in education policy and criminal behavior. Dr. Shepard holds a bachelor’s degree from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, a master’s degree from the University of San Francisco, and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Kim Grainger has been promoted to senior vice provost for...