Rochelle D. Smith, M.S., who will become Saint Louis University’s (SLU) new Vice President for Diversity and Innovative Community Engagement, is no stranger to St. Louis or to leading and developing robust diversity programs. Her resume extends from the Midwest to the Northeast.
This fall, Smith will lead the University’s Division of Diversity and Innovative Community Engagement (DICE), which is home to the Center for Social Action, Cross-Cultural Center for Global Citizenship, and Campus Kitchen, as well as initiatives that include the Atlas Week international festival and a diversity speaker series. Smith will begin her new role at SLU in October, succeeding Amber Johnson, Ph.D., who served as SLU’s interim vice president for diversity and innovative community engagement since August 2021.
“I am humbled and honored to join the SLU family in this important role,” Smith said. “I look forward to working alongside the DICE team and building upon the legacy of my predecessors.”
In her new lead role in the Diversity Inclusion Culture Competence and Equity department (DICE), Smith will focus on faculty recruitment, especially towards those who are historically underrepresented. She will spend time looking at the university’s staff and students who are historically marginalized. She also plans to connect with them concerning their personal experience to make sure they feel a sense of belonging on the campus.
“I’ll be doing a lot of listening because there are individuals who want to create a sense of acceptance and who want to diversify SLU even more. And I want to listen to their voices,” said Smith.
Smith says she will make certain that all voices are heard.
Smith earned her Master of Science degree in health behavior research from Washington University School of Medicine, a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Chicago State University, and certification in executive leadership from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
She has devoted much of her career to tackling complex institutional challenges with a data-driven and research-based approach. She has a track record of making campuses more welcoming for people from backgrounds historically underrepresented in higher education.
Smith is the Inaugural Associate Dean of diversity and inclusion and Associate Chief Diversity Officer at the Yale School of Medicine. She co-administers the school’s Biological and Biomedical Science Diversity and Inclusion Collective. The collective is a student-driven program that fosters the intellectual and personal growth of underrepresented minority students.
Smith also co-chairs the Intersections Science Fellows Symposium, an initiative designed to showcase the outstanding research contributions of postdoctoral students from historically underrepresented backgrounds in the sciences and assist them in securing faculty positions.
“Rochelle Smith is an experienced leader who has designed and implemented innovative initiatives that advance equity in higher education,” said the university president Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D. “I am grateful that she is bringing her expertise to the SLU community, and I look forward to working in partnership with her in the years to come.”
Before Yale, Smith worked at Washington University in St. Louis for 22 years. During her time at the university, she founded the Diversity Pipeline Consortium for STEM and co-designed two faculty-of-color retention programs, among other accomplishments.
“With her proven record of visionary strategic leadership, success working across boundaries, her breadth of management experience, and demonstrated ability to advance and imbed diversity, inclusion, and equity within an organization, Rochelle exemplifies all of the qualities required for this role and many more,” said SLU Provost Michael Lewis, Ph.D.
This legacy is particularly meaningful to Smith, whose late husband, Jonathan C. Smith, Ph.D., was SLU’s first vice president for diversity and community engagement. Her husband was so impactful and beloved by the university and the community, that SLU rededicated its amphitheater in his memory.
Smith looks forward to reconnecting with local community leaders and getting to know her new professional colleagues who are also involved in furthering diversity, equity and inclusion in St. Louis’ academic ecosystem.
“It is the work of everyone at SLU, [we need] the entire community to help in this work,” said Smith.
Ashley Winters is The St. Louis American Report for America reporter.
