Dr. Joseph L. Jones, a political scientist, has been tapped as the next president of Arkansas Baptist College (ABC) — a small, private historically Black college located in Little Rock.
Jones, 39, who is currently a visiting professor of political science at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, was the founding director of the Social Justice Institute at his alma mater, Philander Smith College.
A graduate of the prestigious American Council on Education Fellows Program — which trains academics to assume leadership positions within the academy — Jones made it no secret that he wanted to someday be a president of an HBCU.
“I want to be a college president,” he told Diverse in 2014, shortly before interviewing for the presidency of Philander Smith College. The trustees ultimately selected Dr. Roderick Smothers. “I want to take the reins of an institution and help push it forward.”
Jones, who will begin his new post on September 1, will replace Dr. Fitz Hill, who served as president for more than a decade and will become the executive director of the Arkansas Baptist College Foundation.
Hill, 52, carved out a national reputation for himself as the head football coach at San José State University from 2001 to 2004.
Jones received a bachelor’s, a master’s and a doctoral degree from HBCUs and has spent his career working and teaching at Black colleges.
