Dr. Artika Tyner, a St. Thomas faculty member, administrator and alumna, has been named associate vice president of diversity and inclusion.
Tyner has served as interim officer of diversity and inclusion since July 2015, when she succeeded Dr. Calvin Hill, and looks forward to filling the position on a permanent basis. She will serve on the president’s cabinet.
"It was an amazing opportunity to work with such committed students, faculty, staff and alumni in my interim role, and I look forward to building upon the partnerships made to advance our mission and goals around diversity and inclusion," Tyner said. "This new role will be a unique opportunity for us as a university to redefine diversity and inclusion as a way of life, of teaching, and advancing the common good."
“I remain firmly committed to fostering a culture of greater inclusion at St. Thomas that welcomes and supports diversity,” President Julie Sullivan said. "Dr. Tyner’s appointment is an important step in this process, and I look forward to working very closely with her.”
Tyner holds three degrees from St. Thomas: an Ed.D. in leadership, a master of public policy and leadership, and a J.D. She earned a B.A. in English from Hamline University.
An assistant professor of public policy and leadership in the College of Education, Leadership and Counseling and a clinical faculty member in the School of Law, her scholarly work reflects her commitment to training students to become global leaders and change agents. Throughout her career at St. Thomas she has presented extensively on diversity and inclusion, leadership development, juvenile justice, legal education and alternative dispute resolution/restorative justice.
In addition to serving as interim officer of diversity and inclusion, Tyner has held numerous non-academic roles at St. Thomas. Positions have included director of diversity at the School of Law, chair of the Multicultural Affairs Committee and co-founder of the Community Justice Project, for which she trained and supervised law students as they used their legal skills to address emerging civil rights issues.
Father Larry Snyder, vice president for mission at St. Thomas, praised the strengths that Tyner will bring to the role.
“She has an acute analytical mind and is grounded in the principles of social justice,” he said. "She is first and foremost an educator, which will serve the university with its focus on learning well. I think she will work to further the goal of a university-wide culture of inclusion by involving all members of our community."
