Randolph announces new chief diversity officer

Randolph College has announced the appointment of Charles E. Gibson, III as the new chief diversity officer and director of the Office of Diversity, Identity, Culture, and Inclusion.

“It is the honor of a lifetime to join the Randolph College family while it is poised to achieve more than ever before.” Gibson said of his new appointment. “I am deeply grateful to have been entrusted with this important work.”

Gibson was chosen after a competitive and months-long national search and will start the position April 2.

“Charles brings a wealth of experience to his new role at Randolph College,” said Sue Ott Rowlands, president. “I am looking forward to the leadership and insight he will provide for this important area of the College.”

He received his undergraduate degree in music with an English minor from Wake Forest University and both Master of Arts and Education Specialist degrees in higher education from Appalachian State University. He also received a Master of Education degree in higher education from Penn State and is a doctoral candidate in the Appalachian State University Doctor of Education program.

Throughout his diverse career, Gibson has served as inaugural chief diversity officer for Lees-McRae College in North Carolina, research associate at Appalachian State University,  assistant to the chief diversity officer and associate dean of The Graduate School at Penn State, and research associate at the Center for the Study of Higher Education at Penn State among other roles.

In addition, Gibson is founder and managing principal of Seerscape Solutions LLC, a consulting firm which develops diversity, equity, and inclusion solutions for non-profit and for-profit entities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he advised Fortune 500 companies on a range of diversity-related human resources issues as senior consultant for Icarus Consulting LLC. He also serves on the board of this organization and Caring For Others, Inc., a non-profit that provides human services with a focus on eradicating hunger and poverty. Both organizations are based in the metro Atlanta, Georgia, area.

He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, Kiwanis International, National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, American Association of Blacks in Higher Education, and the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society.