Dr. Joseph H. Silver Named Alabama State President
Courtesy Alabama State news services
Dr. Joseph H. Silver was officially announced this week as the 13th president of Alabama State University during a Board of Trustees.
The Board of Trustees approved Dr. Joseph H. Silver to serve as Alabama State University's 13th president, said Board chairman, Elton N. Dean Sr.
ASU was founded 145 years ago in 1867 by nine former slaves in Marion, Ala. The University has been located in Montgomery since the late 19th century.
The ASU Board selected Silver almost one month ago after a year-long search by a 15-member presidential search committee.
"Today, the ASU family and public will have the opportunity to meet this dynamic and innovative educator and leader," Dean said.
ASU's incoming president currently is provost and vice president of academic affairs at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Ga. Silver is the architect of Clark Atlanta University's new strategic plan and its implementation. As provost, he is the leading fundraiser for the University.
Before his tenure at Clark Atlanta University, Silver was the vice president of the Commission on Colleges for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools beginning in 2006, vice president for academic affairs and professor of political science at Savannah State University; assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University System of Georgia and was an instructor and assistant/associate professor at Kennesaw State University.
Silver said during a press conference Friday morning that he is "humbled and honored to have been selected."
"I like what I see here at Alabama State University. This institution is poised to do some great things," Silver said. "To build on the foundation that has already been laid, I told the Board that I came here to be a part of the equation. I came here to work with this community, I came here to celebrate the faculty, staff and administration. I came here to exercise the next level of development of this great institution."
Silver also described himself as a student-centered leader who has never been too busy to interact with students.
"We are here at universities but for students... It's not about just having them on campus, but it's using the campus as a training ground for what they are going to do when they leave this institution," he said.
Silver received his undergraduate degree from St. Augustine's College, and his master's and doctorate degrees in political science from Atlanta University.
After receiving his doctorate, Silver was selected to participate in summer programs at Oxford University in the United Kingdom, Stanford University, The Freedom Foundation, the American Judicature Society and the ACE Leadership Program. He is a native of North Carolina.
Silver is married to Rosalyn Smalls Silver. The couple has two children, Crystal and Joseph Jr.
Presidential Search Committee chairman and Board member, Judge Marvin Wiggins, said that the year-long search was well worth it since ASU discovered Silver.
"ASU's new president has the expertise, background and vigor to continue the University's important Vision 2020 Plan, and its academic and physical transformation, well into the 21st century," Wiggins said.
