COLUMBUS -- Mac Stewart, dean of University College and associate provost for undergraduate studies at The Ohio State University, has been named interim vice provost for minority affairs, effective Sept. 11, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees. Stewart assumed supervisory responsibility for the Office of Minority Affairs on July 31.

"We are all extremely pleased that Dr. Mac Stewart will lead the Office of Minority Affairs and are very optimistic that his leadership will contribute to OMA's role in the university's future," said Martha Garland, vice provost and dean for undergraduate studies.

As interim vice provost, Stewart will serve while a national search is conducted for a permanent successor to Timothy Knowles, who left the position earlier this summer. The interim appointment could last through June 2001.

Executive Vice President and Provost Edward J. Ray affirmed the university's commitment to diversity and to the office.

"The Office of Minority Affairs provides many services and conducts many programs which are vital to Ohio State's ability to recruit and retain talented individuals from underrepresented groups," Ray said. "It is also central to our efforts to create a campus community that is rich in diversity of people and ideas. We are deeply committed to the principles that guide the Office of Minority Affairs and to ensuring that the office has the kind of strong and effective leadership it needs to do its very important work."

Stewart will have full authority to represent the office and to manage and direct the services provided by the office, which focuses on recruitment, retention and graduation of racially and ethnically diverse students.

These services are provided on campus, through activities at the Frank W. Hale Black Cultural Center, and through off-campus operations such as the Young Scholars Program, which functions in nine cities throughout Ohio. Stewart also will oversee the celebration this academic year of OMA's 30th anniversary.

Stewart, of DELAWARE, has been at Ohio State since 1970 and with University College since 1973, being named dean in 1991. He received a B.A. in sociology from Morehouse College, an M.A. in counseling from Atlanta University, and a Ph.D. in higher education administration from Ohio State.

"I am grateful for the opportunity to guide OMA through this critical period, and I am dedicated to maintaining and building on the strengths of its programs," Stewart said. "I'm confident the OMA team and I will work together to convey Ohio State's commitment to enhancing its diversity profile."

Tom Minnick has accepted the position of acting dean of University College, Garland said.

"Dr. Minnick is deeply committed to students and has spent virtually his entire career involved in curricular issues," Garland said. "We are appreciative of his willingness to undertake this role and are very confident that he will do an outstanding job."

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