UW-Platteville’s first Black chancellor was selected Friday to lead the nation’s only HBCU system, The Advocate reported from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Dennis Shields, 66, has been chancellor of UW-Platteville since 2011, during which time the university says enrollment among students of color has doubled. He will take the helm at the Southern University System, which includes two four-year colleges, a law center, a community college and an agricultural research and extension center, this fall. He will replace President-Chancellor Ray Belton, who is retiring.
As of the fall of 2021, more than 13,300 students attended schools in the system.
“It was a remarkable and inspiring experience to spend a couple of hours with the [students] and to observe the leadership of this Board of Supervisors and really take in how much you care about this institution,” Shields said at the meeting, as quoted by The Advocate. “I take it as a great responsibility to help with you to continue the rise of the Southern University System.”
Shields was named one of the most influential Black leaders in Wisconsin by Madison365 in 2018.
