Campus News

Campus Message from President About New Vice President for Institutional Diversity

Katrice Albert
Katrice Albert

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 19, 2021) — University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto sent a message to the campus community this morning announcing UK's new vice president for institutional diversity. You can read the message below. 

 

A National Leader for Institutional Diversity

Dear Campus Community,

I am extremely pleased to announce that Dr. Katrice A. Albert has accepted the position of Vice President for Institutional Diversity at the University of Kentucky.

She is scheduled to begin her duties in this critically important leadership role on September 27. 

Dr. Albert brings decades of experience and a longstanding reputation as a national leader in efforts around diversity, equity and inclusion as well as community engagement at some of the country’s leading institutions of higher education. She also brings extensive experience in training, development and strategy, working with colleges and universities of all sizes as well as leading private, for-profit and non-profit sector companies.

We are fortunate that someone with her background and leadership skills – along with a clear passion for and commitment to serving students – is joining our institution. After a year of laying a strong foundation and achieving tangible accomplishments, we’ve reached a pivotal moment in our efforts to create a community of belonging for everyone. I’m looking forward to the next steps we will take with Dr. Albert helping lead our efforts.

Here are only a few highlights of a more than 25-year career focused on efforts around diversity, equity and inclusion

  • Dr. Albert has been the top diversity officer and a senior executive at Louisiana State University, the University of Minnesota and the NCAA, where she also led Human Resources. 
  • She is the author of two volumes of work around issues of race, racial equity and mental health, and she has a forthcoming work on leadership in intercollegiate athletics. 
  • She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship and has been published in the Journal of Counseling Psychology and the Journal of Counseling and Development.
  • More specifically, at the NCAA, she served as the executive vice president of inclusion and human resources. In this role, she led efforts to enhance diversity, inclusion, leadership development, external engagement and strategic partnerships on behalf of 500,000 student athletes. She also was responsible for leading employee relations, performance management, professional development and compensation and benefits programs.
  • As vice president for equity and diversity of the University of Minnesota system, Dr. Albert was responsible for leading efforts of five campuses across the entire state to reach the University of Minnesota’s ambitious diversity goals.
  • And as vice provost for equity, diversity and community outreach at Louisiana State University, she was responsible for developing and implementing strategic initiatives and policies around diversity, equity, inclusion and access.
  • Dr. Albert also served as an adjunct faculty member in the LSU College of Human Sciences and Education’s School of Education, where she taught the graduate course on multicultural counseling.
  • Most recently, Dr. Albert has served as executive vice president of culture, innovation and inclusion at S2A Solutions, an organizational development, training and strategy company that works in both the private and public sectors with organizations such as General Electric, Populous and the National Elevator Industry. 
  • Dr. Albert also has her own consultancy, Third Eye Consulting Group, LLC, a diversity management firm that has assisted clients ranging from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, American Red Cross and the Neiman Marcus Group, to the Universities of Notre Dame, Nebraska, West Florida and Central Florida.
  • Dr. Albert currently serves on the Institute for Sport and Social Justice board of directors and the Women’s Sports Foundation board of trustees and has served on numerous boards of directors, including Volunteers of America Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Greater Baton Rouge (where she served as chair), among others. And she won numerous awards for her work as a leader in diversity efforts as well as for her commitment to the communities where she has lived.
  • In 2020, Martin University, Indiana’s only predominately Black institution serving adult learners for nearly half a century, conferred an honorary doctoral degree to Dr. Albert for her significant national contributions to counseling, psychology, higher education, intercollegiate athletics and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. 

As Eric Kaler, the president of Case Western Reserve University and former president of the University of Minnesota, said about Dr. Albert: “She is a visionary leader who brings a wealth of experience working with underserved and diverse communities, a deep understanding of the land-grant mission and a strong focus on assessment and accountability … There are few leaders in the country of the caliber of Dr. Albert.”

A native of Louisiana, Dr. Albert completed her doctoral degree in counseling psychology at Auburn University and completed her clinical internship at Boston University School of Medicine’s Center for Multicultural Training in Psychology. She earned her Master of Science in counseling psychology from the University of Southern Mississippi and graduated magna cum laude from the Xavier University of Louisiana with a Bachelor of Science in psychology.

I know you will welcome Dr. Albert and Brandon Jones to our community. Between now and her official start date, they will be visiting us for meetings both on the campus and in the community. I also want to thank the search committee, chaired by Acting Provost Robert DiPaola and Dean of Students Trisha Clement-Montgomery, for their outstanding work throughout this process.

They are thrilled to be joining the UK family. I am excited about the leadership, collaboration and partnership she will bring to us as we embark on the next steps in our journey to create the community we desire for everyone at the University of Kentucky. Thank you for your commitment to those efforts and the journey we are on together.

Eli Capilouto