Shaw University's Board of Trustees has named Paulette Dillard the Raleigh school's 18th president, officials said Monday.
Dillard has served as interim president since July 2017, when former President Tashni-Ann Dubroy resigned to take a position at Howard University. Dillard previously served as vice president for academic affairs.
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"Upon her appointment as interim president, we determined Dr. Dillard to be the ideal selection to lead this institution," board Chairman Joseph Bell Jr. said in a statement. "We believe her performance to date has demonstrated that she is committed to the transformative education process and more than qualified to lead Shaw University into this next era of excellence."
A Mount Airy native, Dillard graduated from Barber-Scotia College in Concord and earned an MBA from Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. She also hae a master’s degree in biology from Tennessee State University and a Ph.D. in biological sciences from Clark Atlanta University.
She has held senior leadership positions at SmithKline, Quest Diagnostics and Clark Atlanta University's Center for Cancer Research and Therapeutic Development.
"I am honored to be selected by the Board of Trustees to continue to lead this great university," Dillard said in a statement. "I am thankful and committed to intentional leadership of Shaw University as we continuing to grow as an institutional leader in the Raleigh community and globally abroad."