TROY, Ala. – Dr. Belle Wheelan, the first African American and woman to fill the role of president of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, will be a keynote speaker at the sixth annual Leadership Conference Celebrating Black History Month presented by Troy University and The City of Troy. The conference is set for Feb. 2-3 and will be held in the Trojan Center Ballrooms on the Troy Campus.

The theme of this year’s conference, which is designed to bring together local residents in Troy and surrounding communities, civic and community leaders, clergymen and business leaders in a collaborative and educational forum, is “Leadership by Design: Ensuring our Legacy.” 

The conference will feature presentations on “Designing Character,” “Competency and Communication,” “Designing Safe Communities” and “Designing Healthy Communities.”  A conference notebook, containing hand outs and other useful resources will be given to all attendees.

Dr. Wheelan’s career in higher education spans 32 years. Prior to taking her present post as president of the Commission on Colleges in 2005, she served as the secretary of education for the state of Virginia. She also previously served as president of Northern Virginia Community College, the state’s largest institution of higher education and the nation’s second largest community college.

In 1992, Dr. Wheelan became the first African American woman to serve as president of a two- or four-year public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia when she took over the role at Central Virginia Community College.

Prior to her presidencies, Dr. Wheelan held faculty and administrative posts at the Portsmouth Campus of Tidewater Community College in Virginia, Thomas Nelson Community College in Hampton, VA, and San Antonio College in Texas.

Dr. Wheelan holds a bachelor’s degree with a double major in psychology and sociology from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, a master’s degree from Louisiana State University and a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Texas.

Other featured speakers include Dr. Robert Jennings, president of Alabama A&M in Normal; Mrs. Gwendolyn Mosley, prison warden with the Alabama Department of Corrections in Clio; Capt. Huey Thornton of the Montgomery Police Department; Shelia Deveridge, a Social Security claims representative with the Montgomery office; Dr. Yolanda Patterson, MD, of the Charles Henderson Health Care Center; and Dr. Angelique Murphy of Troy, who will provide total health and wellness information.

The conference is open to the public and the registration fee is $30 per person. For more information, contact the Institute for Leadership Development at 670-3389.

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