Message from campus leaders on Sibby Anderson-Thompkins
Sibby Anderson-Thompkins, special adviser to the provost and chancellor for equity and inclusion and interim chief diversity officer, has accepted a new position as vice provost for diversity, equity and inclusion and chief diversity officer at Sewanee, a private liberal arts college in Tennessee.
Dear Carolina Community,
We are writing to share that Sibby Anderson-Thompkins, special adviser to the provost and chancellor for equity and inclusion and interim chief diversity officer, has accepted a new position as vice provost for diversity, equity and inclusion and chief diversity officer at Sewanee, a private liberal arts college in Tennessee. In this inaugural role, Sibby will report to the president and provost, co-lead the University’s strategic planning process for diversity, equity and inclusion and actively participate in the administrative decision-making process. Her portfolio will include the university’s Title IX program and multicultural affairs. She begins this role on Aug. 16.
Over the course of a tumultuous year in which we saw our community and our nation challenged, Sibby has worked tirelessly with colleagues across the University to provide strategic vision and support for students, faculty and staff and to establish new initiatives, including the University Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council, comprised of chief DEI officers from each school and division. During this time, she served as co-chair of Build Our Community Together, the first strategic initiative in Carolina Next: Innovations for Public Good. To bolster the University Office for Diversity and Inclusion, she hired its first director of education, community engagement and belonging and implemented a highly successful education program for faculty and staff.
Sibby established the Carolina Collaborative for Resilience that sponsored the “Culture of Care” series and provided space for education, coping, healing, and resilience around identity-based and racial trauma. She also spearheaded a new DEI Fellows program for undergraduate students to advance diversity and inclusion engagement across the University. We are grateful for Sibby’s strategic vision and leadership.
Prior to her interim appointment, she served as the special assistant to the vice chancellor for research and the director of the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. As part of her role, she led the Carolina Postdoctoral Program for Faculty Diversity and diversity-related initiatives for the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research. The postdoctoral program aims to recruit and develop scholars from diverse groups for potential tenure track appointments at Carolina and other colleges and universities. Under her leadership, the program has thrived and is recognized as one of the most effective, evidenced-based faculty diversity initiatives in the country.
A two-time Carolina alumna, Sibby has more than 25 years of experience in higher education administration. During her career, Sibby served as an assistant dean in the Office of the Dean of Students and an assistant dean in Student Academic Counseling (now the Center for Student Success and Academic Counseling) at Carolina. In addition, she served as an associate dean of Student Affairs at Hampshire College in Massachusetts and as a clinical faculty member in education and dean of academic advising at Agnes Scott College in Georgia.
Sibby has represented Carolina on numerous boards including the UNC System Diversity and Inclusion Council and the North Carolina Diversity and Inclusion Professionals, and national committees, including Vanderbilt University’s NSF AGEP Program, University of California Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship External Board, and the National Postdoctoral Association’s Advisory Group and NSF ADVANCE Advisory Board.
Last week, Sibby was named a C. Knox Massey Distinguished Service Award winner, one of the University’s highest honors for employees. Sibby was recognized for her important work with the Build Our Community Together initiative and for establishing the University’s first-ever Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council, among other accolades.
She has also received the Harvey E. Beech Award for Outstanding Black Alumni, UNC Diversity Award for Outstanding Program, Office of the Secretary of State’s Outstanding Georgia Citizen Award, National Coalition of 100 Black Women Unsung Heroine Award and the North Carolina College Personnel Association Award for Outstanding Service in Support of the Profession.
Please join us in congratulating Sibby on her new position and thanking her for her longstanding service to Carolina.
Sincerely,
Kevin M. Guskiewicz
Chancellor
Robert A. Blouin
Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost
