Mary Schmidt Campbell

Mary Schmidt Campbell (born October 21, 1947), is an American academic administrator, professor, author and scholar of art and culture. A leader in higher education, the arts and the public sector for nearly 40 years, Dr. Campbell began her tenure as the 10th president of Spelman College, a leading liberal arts institution for women of African descent located in Atlanta, Georgia, on August 1, 2015. She currently holds this position and is setting the standard for leadership in higher education. As president of Spelman College, Dr. Campbell is leading the institution in the development of a comprehensive strategic plan grounded in the College’s compelling mission to propel the institution into the top tier of liberal arts institutions, while preparing women of color for life and career. She recently completed the book, “An American Odyssey: The Life and Work of Romare Bearden” for Oxford University Press. For this work, Dr. Campbell received the 2018 Hooks National Book Award from the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change at the University of Memphis. In 2019, she was a finalist for the 55th Georgia Author of the Year Award in the category of biography. Also, the Museum of African American History selected "An American Odyssey" as a finalist for the for 2019 MAAH Stone Book Award. Prior to becoming the 10th president of Spelman, Dr. Campbell was a major force in New York City’s cultural sector. Her career in New York began at the Studio Museum in Harlem during a time when the City was on the verge of bankruptcy and Harlem was in steep decline. Under her leadership, the Museum was transformed from a rented loft to the country’s first accredited Black fine arts museum. She went on to serve as university professor in the Department of Art and Public Policy and dean emerita of the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. During Dr. Campbell’s tenure of more than two decades as dean of Tisch, she elevated the school’s profile and stature, increased the recruitment of a more diverse faculty and student body, and led an unprecedented capital campaign for the school. In 1987, New York’s late Mayor Edward I. Koch, invited Dr. Campbell to serve as the City’s cultural affairs commissioner. In this role, she led the Department of Cultural Affairs which oversees the operations and capital development of the city’s major cultural institutions. As a commissioner, she gained a reputation as an advocate for large and small arts organizations throughout all five boroughs. She is a fellow of the New York Institute for the Humanities. She is married to Dr. George Campbell Jr., president emeritus of The Cooper Union. They have three sons.

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