Dr. Gabriel Barreneche named Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Dear Oglethorpe Community,

I am pleased to announce Dr. Gabriel Barreneche will serve as the next Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs effective July 1, 2024. Dr. Barreneche currently serves as Dean of the Evans School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences and professor of Spanish at Berry College in Rome, Ga. He is the chief academic, administrative, and budgetary officer for the Evans School supervising 69 full-time faculty in nine academic departments and 17 academic majors.

He previously served as Associate Dean for Advising of the College of Liberal Arts at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla. He was the academic lead for student success initiatives helping to increase first-year student retention by 4% and second-year student retention by 8% over three years. While at Rollins he also served as Associate Dean of the Faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences, first-year seminar director, director and faculty-in-residence of the living learning communities, and Hispanic studies director. Among his many publications are the co-edited volume “Educational Technology for the Global Village: Worldwide Innovation and Best Practices” and “Reciprocity and Partnership: How Do We Know it Is Working?” which he co-authored in “Reconceptualizing Faculty Development in Service-Learning/Community Engagement.”

A member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, Dr. Barreneche earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish from Boston College and his Master of Arts and Ph.D. in Hispanic Languages and Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles.

We owe a great debt of gratitude to Dr. Kendra King Momon for serving so ably as Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs since May of 2023. Her steady leadership and organizational acumen helped the academic enterprise at Oglethorpe navigate this season while continuing to serve students and empower their success. She will be indispensable to Dr. Barreneche as he transitions to Oglethorpe.
I also want to thank the search committee co-chaired by Oglethorpe’s Chief-of-Staff and General Counsel Regina Mincberg and Dr. Brian Patterson, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science. The committee members are Eli Arnold, Dr. Stephen Craft, Dr. Judith Levy, Ed Rosser, Dr. Rhana Gittens Wheeler, and Dr. Amanda Whooley.

I appreciate everyone on campus contributing to the search and helping us focus on our mission. I ask you to welcome Gabriel and show him the same level of support you have given Dr. Momon and me. I believe with Dr. Barreneche’s appointment and with your help, Oglethorpe is well-positioned to being recognized as Atlanta’s premier undergraduate learning experience.

Best,

Kathryn

Kathryn McClymond, Ph.D. (she, her)
President