Dr. Carl Pettis

 Provost for Academic Affairs

 Dr. Carl S. Pettis is a proud alumnus of Alabama State University (ASU). Dr. Pettis was   awarded the Bachelor of Science degree (2001 Major – mathematics and minor –   computer science) and the Master of Science degree (2003 Mathematics) from ASU. Dr. Pettis received his doctorate degree in mathematics from Auburn University in 2006. He was the first graduate of the Alabama Bridge to the Doctorate Program. He has since published a number of research articles in the area of Design Theory. Dr. Pettis currently serves as the Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. He is also a professor of mathematics in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science at ASU. 

Additionally, Dr. Pettis is the principal investigator for three National Science Foundation initiatives at ASU, namely the Greater Alabama Black Belt Region Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (GABBR-LSAMP), INCLUDES and a Targeted Infusion Project for Big Data Analytics.  He also serves as the director for several federally funded K-12 educational activities such as the National Summer Transportation Institute (NSTI), the UNITE Program, the Research and Engineering Apprenticeship Program, and the Institute for Mathematics, Science, Engineering, and Technology (IMSET).

Whenever he is asked, what made you choose to return to ASU, Pettis simply responds, “Where else but the place that helped to shape and mold me into the man that I am today would I choose as my professional oasis, a place that will allow me to shape and mold the lives of others”.  

Dr. Kennedy Wekesa

Associate Provost for Academic Affairs

Dr. Kennedy S. Wekesa serves as The Associate Provost for Academic Affairs and is a tenured full professor of biology at Alabama State University. Dr. Wekesa received his B.S. in Biology from Guilford College in 1989, an M.A. in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1992 and his Ph.D. in Zoology from North Carolina State University in 1996.

In the past 20 years at ASU, he has received more than $15 million in extramural research and training support from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Defense and the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE). He has successfully conducted research in sensory transduction mechanisms at ASU, where he engages students in teaching, research and mentoring. National and international peer reviewed journals have published his successful research. He has presented his research findings at several institutions and his opinions have been published in The Scientist, Bloomberg News and USA Today.

Dr. Mary Grimes-McGreer

Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs

Dr. Mary Grimes-McGreer, a 20-year veteran in education, has served as a faculty member, an academic department chair, a coordinator of graduate studies, associate provost and chief officer for academic and student services at minority serving colleges in the Southeast.

 Dr. Grimes received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in professional theatre arts at North Carolina A& T State University; Master of Fine Arts in musical theatre at Alliant University in San Diego, CA; and Ph.D. in Education Administration with a concentration in Higher Education from the University of South Carolina at Columbia.  She has served on numerous statewide and national committees such as The Institute on Poverty and Deprivation Influential Sectors Program, Arts in Basic Curriculum Steering Committee, The Consortia for Women in Education, Board Member, Rotarian, and Executive Council Member. She is a graduate of the prestigious American Council on Education Fellows Program in 2011.

Her research interests are in the intersection of race, class, and gender studies in education. Her teaching interests include educational research, leadership, culturally relevant pedagogy, inclusive instructional strategies, and curriculum design.

Dr. Caterina Bristol

Assistant Provost and Dean of the Harold Lloyd Murphy Graduate School

Dr. Caterina Bristol is Assistant Provost and Dean of the Harold Lloyd Murphy Graduate School. As a music professor and arts executive at Alabama State University for more than two decades, she has promoted diversity and equity in the arts, society, and higher education. She has worked on or directed multiple accreditation, high impact projects, and represents Alabama State on various commissions and boards. She is a member of the Commission on Accreditation of the National Association of Schools of Music, is a visiting evaluator for NASM, sits on the Executive Committee of the Alabama Council of Graduate Deans, serves as the Southern Division chair of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors, and is a board member of Clefworks, a local arts education advocacy organization. Dr. Bristol advocates offering students the opportunity to expand their knowledge and skills through traditional instruction, coupled with experiential learning and entrepreneurial activities. In support of her work, she has presented on the topics of diversity in graduate music programs, first-generation students, first-generation faculty, 21^st century musicianship, and the use of technology for under-resourced institutions at several national and international conferences. As a faculty member and Associate Dean, she helped make the College of Visual and Performing Arts the top producer of African-American arts graduates among public HBCUs.