Dear Monmouth University Community: I am pleased to share with you that Pamela E. Scott-Johnson, Ph.D., will join Monmouth University this summer as the new Provost/Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and a Professor of Psychology. Her appointment concludes a comprehensive, national search process that resulted in nearly 100 applicants.
Since 2016, Dr. Scott-Johnson has served as the Dean of the College of Natural and Social Sciences at California State University, Los Angeles, the largest college at that university, featuring over 150 faculty members in 12 departments and serving nearly 6,000 undergraduate and 500 graduate students. Cal State LA is recognized as one of the nation’s most innovative institutions of higher education, as evidenced by a New York Times #1 national ranking for upward mobility. At Cal State LA, Dr. Scott-Johnson has been focused on establishing corporate and community partnerships that create mutual benefit.
Prior to joining Cal State LA, Dr. Scott-Johnson spent nearly 15 years at Morgan State University, serving as the Interim Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, as Chair of the Department of Psychology, and as Professor of Psychology. Before joining Morgan State, she spent 10 years as a faculty member at Spelman College, where she earned tenure. Dr. Scott-Johnson’s research interests include eating disorders, body image, and sensory systems. She is also committed to preparing more minority students for the psychology pipeline. Dr. Scott-Johnson’s list of scholarly accomplishments is long and impressive, and she looks forward to working across academic units at Monmouth to ensure that our faculty have increasing opportunities and support for their respective research interests and scholarship.
Prior to beginning her work in higher education three decades ago, Dr. Scott-Johnson worked for nearly nine years in the corporate sector as a senior research scientist for Kraft General Foods, where she was an expert on taste and smell. She is a member of numerous boards and associations, including currently serving as a member of the Board of Directors of the prestigious American Psychological Association.
Dr. Scott-Johnson earned M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in psychology and neuroscience from Princeton University and a B.A. degree (magna cum laude) in psychology from Spelman College, one of the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges, where she was inducted into the Psi Chi National Honor Society in Psychology.
Dr. Scott-Johnson will be visiting campus in person later this spring and will have ample opportunities to meet members from across the university community. As soon as details for her campus visit become available, I will share them with you. I look forward to introducing Dr. Scott-Johnson to all of you at that time.
I am grateful to the members of the search committee who worked diligently over the past several months to help narrow a deep and competitive applicant pool and who were highly supportive of Dr. Scott-Johnson. I am especially thankful to Dr. Robert McCaig, Vice President for Enrollment Management, for his thoughtful leadership in chairing the committee for this critically important hire. I would also like to extend my thanks to those among you who participated in one of more of Dr. Scott-Johnson’s twelve interviews at Monmouth as part of the search process. This wide range of participation, coupled with the comprehensive feedback received from members of the community, was vital to the decision-making process.
Please join me in congratulating Dr. Scott-Johnson on her new role and in welcoming her back to New Jersey and to Monmouth University.
Sincerely,
Dr. Patrick F. Leahy
President