Valerie Kinloch is President of Johnson C. Smith University, the only Historically Black College/University in Charlotte, NC.
With nearly three decades of experience in higher education, she is a passionate educator who has worked at The Ohio State University, Teachers College-Columbia University, the University of Houston-Downtown and the University of Pittsburgh. Prior to becoming President, she was the Renée and Richard Goldman Endowed Dean of Education at the University of Pittsburgh, where she strengthened the school’s commitments to equity and justice by focusing on community engagement, equitable educational pathways for students, faculty development, and philanthropy. At Ohio State, Valerie served as Associate Chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning; the College’s Chief Diversity Officer; and the Associate Dean for diversity, inclusion, and community engagement. In those roles, she strengthened curricula, partnered with colleagues to increase the enrollment of minoritized students, and focused on equity and justice in classrooms and communities. Valerie is Past President of the National Council of Teachers of English, a fellow of the American Educational Research Association, and fellow of the American Council on Education. Her dedication to scholarship earned her grants from the U.S. Department of Education, Corporation for National and Community Service, Fulbright-Hays Program, and Spencer Foundation. She is the recipient of many awards, including the Scholars of Color Early Career Award from the American Educational Research Association, the Distinguished Diversity Award from Ohio State, the Rewey Belle Inglis Award for Outstanding Women in English Education as well as the Advancement of People of Color Leadership Award, both from the National Council of Teachers of English. She has authored books on equity, literacy, and Black women writers, including the award-winning, “Harlem On Our Minds: Place, Race and the Literacies of Urban Youth.”
