St. Thomas' Diversity and Inclusion Officer Calvin Hill Named VP at Springfield College in Massachusetts

Dr. Calvin R. Hill, who became the university officer for diversity and inclusion at the University of St. Thomas on Jan. 26, has been named vice president for inclusion and community engagement at Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Calvin Hill

Calvin Hill

Father Larry Snyder, vice president for mission at St. Thomas, said Hill has resigned his position, effective June 26, for family reasons.

“He has accepted a position at Springfield College in Massachusetts where his wife and daughter reside,” Snyder wrote in an email announcement Wednesday to the St. Thomas community. “Even though Calvin has been a part of the St. Thomas community for only a few months, he has already impacted our campus community. Calvin has spearheaded several initiatives that have given this office a strong momentum. Calvin leaves this position with our gratitude and best wishes.”

“It is important that I express to you the sheer joy and delight that I have experienced during my short tenure at St. Thomas,” Hill wrote to St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan. “I felt welcomed to the St. Thomas community immediately and loved going to work every day. I found the students to be bright, engaged and energizing.”

The announcement about Hill’s new appointment was made Wednesday by Springfield’s President Dr. Mary-Beth Cooper. The college offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the fields of health sciences, human and social services, sport management and movement studies, education, business, and the arts and sciences. It also offers doctoral programs in physical education, physical therapy and counseling psychology. It enrolls more than 5,000 traditional, nontraditional and international students at its main campus in Springfield, and at its School of Human Services campuses across the country.

Hill has more than 20 years of experience in higher education. Before coming to St. Thomas he had served as associate provost and chief diversity officer at MGH Institute of Health Professions in Boston; assistant dean and director of diversity programs as well as director of minority affairs at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts; and admissions counselor at McPherson College in McPherson, Kansas.

He holds a doctorate in political science from Howard University in Washington, D.C.; a master’s in personnel administration from Emporia State University in Kansas; and a bachelor’s in history and political science from Bethany College, also in Kansas.