Meet Southern's administrators, starting with our #TopOwl, Interim President Dwayne Smith.
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Dwayne Smith
Interim President
On June 1, 2023, Dr. Dwayne Smith assumed the role of interim president of Southern Connecticut State University, a public institution of over 8,800 students in New Haven, Connecticut.
Since 2020, Dr. Smith served as campus CEO of Housatonic Community College in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and before coming to Housatonic, he served as interim president of Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis, Mo., following his successful 13 years as that institution’s provost. Overall, he has enjoyed a 40-year career in higher education.
He has received numerous awards and honors for his service to the community, including being recognized as one of the Connecticut NAACP’s 100 Most Influential Blacks in Connecticut in 2021 and 2024.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in educational administration from Truman State University. He earned a Ph.D. in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Missouri.
President's Cabinet Organizational Chart | Office of the President
Lillian Wanjagi
Vice President for Finance and Administration
Chief Financial Officer
Lillian Wanjagi joined Southern as the university’s Vice President for Finance & Administration and Chief Financial Officer on January 24, 2025.
She came to Southern from her role as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) & Vice Chancellor, Business & Finance at Fayetteville State University, Fayetteville, NC. At FSU, she oversaw a $220 million-plus construction and major renovation program and guided the development and execution of the university’s financial strategy. Wanjagi also served as CFO and Vice President for Finance and Administration at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wis., and as Executive Director of Facilities Administration at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where she led the implementation of IBM’s Maximo Integrated Workplace Management System (WMS) for more than 20,000 users.
Wanjagi earned a bachelor of science in business administration in accounting from Wingate University, an MBA in international business from Gardner-Webb University, and a doctor of education in higher education administration–leadership from the University of Houston.
Finance & Administration Organizational Chart
Julia Irwin
Interim Provost
Julia Irwin joined Southern in 2008 and rose through the faculty ranks to earn a full professorship in psychology in 2017. She has an extensive publication record, with her work focused on audiovisual speech perception in children, including those with autism spectrum disorders. Prior to her appointment as as interim dean of the SCSU School of Graduate and Professional Studies in 2022, Julia was a senior research scientist at Haskins Laboratories and the director of the LEARN Center at Yale University.
Closing in on being a member of our SPAR million-dollar club, Julia has been Principal Investigator on several grants from the NIH Division of Deafness and Communication Disorders. Importantly, she has also mentored many of our Southern scholars at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Julia’s wide-ranging extra-curricular contributions include serving on the BOR Faculty Awards Committee, as Coordinator of STEM Grants and Contracts, as a member of PACES, and as the university’s Research Integrity Officer and Director of Research Protection.
She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the State University of New York, Oswego, and holds an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut.
Academic Affairs Organizational Chart | Academic Affairs
Tracy Tyree
Vice President for Student Affairs
Tracy Tyree joined Southern in 2013 from her most recent position as associate vice president of student affairs at the University of South Florida (USF). USF is a public Research I institution within the State University System of Florida, with about 48,000 students on four campuses. She brings a track record of commitment to student success, effective senior administration, and innovation in student programming and support services.
Tyree strives to provide support to students through Student Affairs services and programs and to create the climate, culture, and opportunities for students to realize their best possible college experience, both inside and outside of the classroom.
Tyree earned her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland and her M.A. from Indiana University, both in college student personnel administration. She earned her B.S.B.A. in finance from the University of Florida.
Student Affairs Organizational Chart
Michael Kingan
Vice President for Institutional Advancement
Executive Director SCSU Foundation
Michael Kingan was named Southern’s vice president for institutional advancement in July 2018. He oversees Development, Integrated Communications & Marketing, and Alumni Relations and serves as executive director of the SCSU Foundation.
Kingan has served for more than 25 years in a number of diverse institutions, including the Universities of Michigan, Washington, Iowa and New Mexico. He was the first Chief Advancement Officer at the Singapore American School, one of the world’s premier international schools, with an enrollment exceeding 4,000 students in grades pre-kindergarten through 12. Most recently, Kingan was the vice president for development and alumni relations at the University of Texas at Arlington, a Carnegie Research-1 institution that ranks among the top five most diverse student populations of all comprehensive public universities in the nation.
He has prepared and successfully launched comprehensive fundraising campaigns throughout his career and has expertise in identifying fundraising priorities, collaborating with university leadership, faculty, staff, alumni, and volunteers and facilitating gift engagements that result in substantial growth in institutional support.
Kingan earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Austin College in Sherman and his Master of Public Affairs degree from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He served as an instructor in the Overseas Service Corps of the YMCA in Keelung, Taiwan, before embarking on his career in philanthropy and advancement.
Institutional Advancement Organizational Chart
Walter Schwarz
Interim Vice President, Technology
Chief Information Officer (CIO)
Prior to joining Southern in 2020, he lead the IT department at the University of Bridgeport as the Director of Academic and Campus Technology Services. He has over 20 years of technology support and management experience in higher education organizations in Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, and Connecticut.
Walter’s responsibilities have included digital transformation, strategic technology planning, systems integration, server administration, LMS administration, database administration, network administration, and application design and development.
Walter received BS Degrees in Computer Science and Computer Engineering from the University of Minnesota and completed his MBA at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.
Information Technology Organizational Chart
Kelvin Rutledge
Interim Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Kelvin Rutledge has served as associate vice president for institutional inclusive strategies & change management since 2022, managing the day-to-day operations of the DEI division and overseeing university-wide initiatives such as the social justice grants and the SCSU Inclusion and Well-Being survey for employees.
He has served on various equity and inclusion boards and worked in career development at Florida State University and the University of Georgia. While leading Southern’s Office of Career and Professional Development since 2018, he created partnerships and employment opportunities both on campus and in the external community that have positively impacted student success.
Kelvin earned a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology and political science from Austin Peay State University, a Master of Science degree in higher education from Florida State University, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in higher education from Florida State University.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Organizational Chart
Julie Edstrom
Vice President for Enrollment Management
Julie Edstrom joined Southern in July 2019, bringing over 25 years of experience in higher education enrollment management, marketing, and student services. Edstrom is a leader and strategist with deep experience in areas including recruitment and enrollment planning, admissions, student financial services, marketing, retention, institutional research, adult and graduate program development, as well as cabinet- and board-level visioning and planning. She brings a successful record of progressive responsibility, process improvements, and staff development. She comes to Southern from University of Providence in Great Falls, Mont., where she was vice president of enrollment management. Previously, she served in various capacities at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, Minn., most recently as vice president of enrollment management.
Edstrom received her Bachelor of Arts degree in international relations and her Master of Arts degree in leadership at Augsburg University.