SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA—Dr. Dwain C. Pruitt has been named Wofford College’s first chief equity officer. In this role, Pruitt, who is a 1995 Wofford graduate, will lead the college’s collaborative efforts to advance strategic goals, with emphasis on informing diversity initiatives, policy development, campus climate and the implementation of high-impact efforts that ensure inclusion. He also will ensure institutional compliance with applicable federal and state laws related to Title IX.
Pruitt comes to Wofford most recently from the University of Louisville, where he served as the assistant dean for curriculum and governance in the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Remaining connected with students has always been a priority, and I look forward to working with Wofford students both inside and outside of the classroom to develop a more just, equitable and diverse community,” Pruitt said.
He also has worked in undergraduate research at the University of South Florida and at Morgan State University’s College of Liberal Arts in a variety of administrative and student support positions.
For the past year, Pruitt has served as a consultant on the “History, Memory and Place” working group of the Wofford College Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) task force.
Pruitt brings with him 13 years of balancing administrative work with teaching responsibilities.
Pruitt earned his master’s and doctoral degrees in early modern European history/colonial Latin America from Emory University. His primary research focus is race and slavery in 18th-century France, but he also studies contemporary popular culture and media. He has published, edited and lectured widely on a variety of topics — from “‘The Opposition of the Law to the Law: Race, Slavery and the Law in Nantes, 1715-1778,” to “The Comics That Hate Produced: Representing the African-American Muslim Experience in DC Comics.”
He was Wofford’s ninth Presidential International Scholar.
“We are excited that Dr. Dwain Pruitt has chosen to come back home to Wofford College as the college’s first chief equity officer,” said President Nayef Samhat. “He has an excellent administrative reputation, and he has a passion for student success. He lent his wisdom and creative problem solving to the JEDI task force, and already has great ideas to highlight the college’s shared history and build community.”
Wofford College, established in 1854, is a four-year, residential liberal arts college located in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It offers 27 major fields of study to a student body of 1,775 undergraduates. Nationally known for the strength of its academic program, outstanding faculty, study abroad participation and successful graduates, Wofford is recognized consistently as a “best value” and for its commitment to student success and accessibility for low- and middle-income students. The college community has 12 sororities and fraternities as well as 19 NCAA Division I athletics teams.