John T. Wolfe Jr. facts for kids

John T. Wolfe Jr. is an American education expert and a leader who used to work at universities. He was the president of Kentucky State University from 1990 to 1991. Later, he led Savannah State College as its president from 1993 to 1997.

Early Life and Learning

John T. Wolfe Jr. was born in Mississippi. He grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He finished high school at St. Philip Basilica High School in Chicago in 1960.

He earned his first college degree, a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in education, in 1964. He got this degree from Chicago Teachers College. In 1972, he earned a Master of Science (M.S.) degree in English education. This was from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. He continued his studies and earned his Ph.D. (doctorate) in linguistics from Purdue University in 1976.

His Career Journey

Leading at Universities

Fayetteville State University

In 1980, Dr. Wolfe became the Head of Humanities and Fine Arts at Fayetteville State University. He later became the Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs. In February 1985, he was named the Acting Dean of Academic Affairs.

Bowie State University

From 1985 until June 1990, Dr. Wolfe served as the Provost of Bowie State University. A provost is a senior academic officer, often like a chief academic officer.

Kentucky State University

Dr. Wolfe became the 12th president of Kentucky State University in 1990. He served there until 1991. During his time, he worked to bring more Afro-centric programs to the university. Students at the university supported him strongly. They even marched to the state capitol to show their support. He left his role due to disagreements with the university's Board of Regents.

Savannah State University

Dr. Wolfe became the tenth president of Savannah State College in 1993. During his time, the college changed its name to Savannah State University. He was president until 1997.

During his leadership, the university grew a lot.

• Graduate programs in Public Administration and Social Work returned.
• Savannah State College became a state university.
• The number of students reached its highest ever, over 3,200 students.
• He started the university's first Faculty Senate.
• He helped get $12 million for a new sports complex.
• He also secured $1 million for a new track and field facility.
• Funding for research projects doubled, from $7.11 million to $14.3 million.

After four years, he decided not to continue as president. He then took a new job. He became the Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University System of Georgia.

Working with the NCAA

In 1996, while he was president of Savannah State College, Dr. Wolfe was chosen for a special team. He joined 12 other university leaders on the NCAA's Division II Presidents Council Transition Team. The NCAA helps organize college sports.

University System of Maryland

On January 3, 2006, Dr. Wolfe was appointed Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University System of Maryland. His main job was to promote diversity and inclusion. He also helped create academic policies and leadership programs.

Dr. Wolfe retired from the University System of Maryland in 2017. After retiring, he gave a talk about managing disagreements. He shared that "Disruption is a part of life. You have to anticipate it." He also said, "to make diversity and inclusion work, you have to find a common ground."

His Writings

Dr. Wolfe has written about many topics. These include literature, language, and education.

In 2015, he wrote a chapter for a book called Exploring Issues of Diversity in HBCUs. HBCUs are Historically Black Colleges and Universities. In his chapter, he discussed diversity at these schools.

In 2020, he co-authored another chapter. This one was titled "Examining Barriers to Minority Faculty Contributions in Higher Education." It was published in the book Disparities in the Academy: Accounting for the Elephant.

He was also thanked in the credits of a documentary film. The film was called Dominica: Charting a Future for Paradise (2011). It was about the history of the country of Dominica.

Awards and Achievements

Special Fellowships

• National Endowment for the Humanities
• American Council on Education
• Gulf Oil Faculty Forum

Professional Roles

• Founder of Avant-Garde Higher Education Services and Solutions, Inc.
• Executive director (1991–1993) of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.
• Co-chair of the Washington Regional Taskforce Against Campus Prejudice.
• President of the Higher Education Group of Washington, D.C.
• Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Leadership Development and Diversity, University System of Maryland (USM).
• President of the Black Caucus, National Council of Teachers of English.

Special Honors

• Honored as an Old Master by Purdue University in 1991.
• Inducted into the Washington, D.C. Urban League's Senior Hall of Fame.