After working her way up the ladder at Millikin for 16 years, Provost Mary Black has decided to leave and return to Iowa. 

Before she became the Provost, Black started in the School of Theatre and Dance. She started as an Assistant Professor of Theatre, then an Associate Professor, then a Professor, and finally, she served as the Director of the School of Theatre and Dance. 

Not only did she spend much of her professional career in the theatre realm, but she also spent her undergraduate and graduate careers immersed in the realm.

Black has received a BA in Theatre from the University of Iowa and an MFA in Theatre Technology from Indiana University.

It is safe to say that Black is a theatre lover through and through. However, her love for theatre and skill in the theatre world has assisted her in her role as Provost. 

“Theatre folks have to be strong collaborators, and beyond that, technical theatre folks also have to manage processes, personnel, and budgets in a way that many other disciplines don’t,” Black said. “So, I felt like that skill set really prepared me for my work as first director of the School of Theatre and Dance and then eventually Provost.”

In her time at Millikin, she helped with many shows. Black shared that Heather’s The Musical was her favorite show to work on. 

“Heathers: The Musical was a really incredible opportunity to work with a director and designers who worked really well and collaboratively together,” Black said. “And I thought it had a really beautiful, cohesive, and fun final product.”

Participating in the shows Millikin produces gives students real-life experience, or as it is more commonly referred to at Millikin, “performance learning.” As the Provost, Black works with the Deans to ensure there are always performance learning opportunities for students. 

“Millikin’s investment in performance learning follows from the mission to prepare students for professional success, and I think the opportunity for students to really engage in professional work in their disciplines is unique at Millikin,” Black said. 

Even before accepting the role of Provost, Black was watching and encouraging performance learning.

“I had the opportunity to work with multiple student-run ventures in my time as director, most notably Pipe Dream Studio Theatre, which I have always found to be a really exciting opportunity for students. They not only produce their own artistic work, but also learn about marketing that work, managing the finances of that work, and paying their bills and paying payroll. That I think has been really good for our students and helped prepare them for professional success when they leave the institution,” Black said. 

Black has also made impressive improvements with the transfer program.

“As we have spoken to our students, and particularly our transfer students, in the last several years, we’ve realized some of the barriers that transfer students faced in transferring to Millikin, and once we realized those barriers, we really wanted to make sure we were addressing them,” Black said.

Black has been instrumental in the creation of the various community college transfer programs Millikin offers. 

“We’ve grown our transfer student numbers even in the first year of these new agreements, and I think that’s really going to help create a more seamless path to a four-year education for a lot of students in the state of Illinois,” Black said.

Even though Black is doing amazing work as Provost, she has decided to leave this year after receiving the position of Dean of the College of Humanities, Arts & Sciences at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, her hometown.

“I have been looking for the right next career opportunity, but the impetus for that has been moving closer to family,” Black said.

Being closer to her family and having them in her children’s lives is important to her. So when she saw the opportunity, she took it. 

Executive Assistant to the Provost, Jennifer Moore, and Black have been working alongside each other for a while and have become good friends.

“When she told me she was looking [for a job], my initial feeling was, “Of course,” because I want what is best for you and what is best for your family, and then, you know, my own selfish feelings are there, but not paramount in any way.”

Moore describes Black as an amazing friend and person. Black will truly be missed by many.

“She is one of the coolest friends I’ve ever had,” Moore said. “Her perspective, just her general life perspective, her acceptance, and sense of fairness for everyone are highly uncommon and wonderful to experience.”

When Black leaves, there will undoubtedly be some big shoes to fill, but Nancy Curtin, the Dean of Arts and Sciences at Millikin, has just been named interim Provost.

“Nancy has been a tremendous colleague and really great administrator for the College of Arts and Sciences, and I think she also has a broader perspective of the university and the state of higher education right now, while also being a really strong advocate for students and for inclusion and access on this campus,” Black said.

Moore works closely with Curtin’s assistant, so she has a unique perspective on Curtin’s way of leading.

“I also work closely with [Nancy Curtin’s] assistant, which I think gives me a unique perspective on who she is and how she navigates her position and the decisions that she makes,” Moore said. “I think she is not only a strong leader, but a compassionate leader, just because she’s a compassionate human, which I think is super important in a leadership role.”

Although Black is leaving, she is leaving Millikin in good hands. 

Black has been at Millikin since 2009, so her departure is bittersweet. 

“I’ve spent my full professional career at Millikin, and I have loved it here,” Black said. “I will always be grateful for the opportunity to serve in this role, as well as for all of the incredible people I’ve worked with and the amazing students I’ve had the opportunity to teach in my time here.”