Alison Morrison-Shetlar named provost at Western Carolina University

Alison Morrison-Shetlar, dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences at Elon University, has accepted the position of provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Western Carolina University at Cullowhee, N.C. She will begin her work there Feb. 1.

Morrison-Shetlar has been at Elon since 2010, overseeing 19 academic departments, 26 interdisciplinary minors, and pre-law and pre-health programs.

“I am deeply appreciative for the leadership that Alison has provided for Elon College over the past three years,” said Steven House, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “Based on her record of innovation and success at Elon, she will be an outstanding academic and administrative leader at Western Carolina and we wish her the best in her new role.” 

House will immediately begin conversations with President Leo M. Lambert and the faculty of Elon College to determine interim leadership and to plan for a national search to select Morrison-Shetlar’s successor.

Morrison-Shetlar said that Western Carolina University’s emphasis on excellence in teaching and learning and its commitment to community collaboration dovetail with her own professional values and experiences.

“I have been interested and involved in Western Carolina University for several years, watching it grow, seeing the impact that the university, faculty, staff and students are having on the economic development of the area through engaged learning activities such as service learning, research and creativity, and community engagement,” she said.

In announcing Morrison-Shetlar’s appointment, Western Carolina University Chancellor David O. Belcher noted her 33 years of experience working in higher education at eight institutions in three countries.

“She garnered tremendous support from the university community during the course of the search process, and I eagerly anticipate Western Carolina’s growth and development under her leadership,” Belcher said.

Prior to her work at Elon, Morrison-Shetlar served as vice provost, dean of undergraduate studies and director of the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning at the University of Central Florida and as director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching at Georgia Southern University.