After providing steady leadership over the past year during a transitional period amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Marnel Niles Goins officially takes the reins on Monday as permanent Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities at Marymount University.
Dr. Niles Goins began her tenure at Marymount in 2019 as Associate Dean of the former School of Design, Arts and Humanities and Professor of Communication. Since 2020, she has served as Interim Dean through the majority of the pandemic and an academic structure reorganization that led to the establishment of the current College of Sciences and Humanities.
“I am both honored and humbled to begin serving as the permanent Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities,” Dr. Niles Goins said. “We’ve done so much as a unit in less than a year, and the brilliance of our students and the commitment from our faculty will continue to propel the College forward exponentially over the next year and beyond.”
A number of new academic programs have been developed under her leadership, including a graduate certificate program for Ethics and Leadership in Criminal Justice, which is launching in the Fall 2021 semester. Also new is the 4+1 MA in English program, which enables students to earn a B.A. in Literature & Languages or Digital Writing & Narrative Design and a M.A. in English & Humanities over five years of study at Marymount. This program facilitates a student’s transition from a broad-based liberal arts B.A. into a flexible, customizable and interdisciplinary M.A. program that concludes with a thesis or an advanced internship practicum that addresses the student’s professional goals.
“I am so delighted to welcome Dr. Marnel Niles Goins to my senior leadership team, as she brings a wealth of experience in academic leadership,” explained Dr. Hesham El-Rewini, Provost and Senior Vice President at Marymount University. “She is a well-established scholar and educator with a great passion for student success, especially those from underserved communities and underrepresented groups. I look forward to working with Marnel in her new role for years to come.”
Dr. Niles Goins also holds the co-chair position of Marymount’s Retention and Graduation Committee.
“Marnel has been instrumental in our efforts to retain our students, and have our Saints continue their studies at Marymount,” said Dr. Irma Becerra, President of Marymount University. “A measure of success in our Strategic Plan, Momentum, is to retain over 90 percent of entering first college and transfer students. With leaders like Marnel heading this committee, we’ve implemented various strategies that include connecting students with faculty and staff mentors, building support systems around campus, expanding access to professional advisors and reducing the cost of textbooks and fees.”
Prior to her arrival at Marymount, Dr. Niles Goins was a Professor of Communication at California State University, Fresno, and has also taught courses at Howard University, the University of Iowa and George Mason University. She is currently the President of the Western States Communication Association, and was formerly the President of the Organization for Research on Women and Communication.
Her academic research focuses on organizational and small group communication, with a special interest on the intersections of race and gender. She has had several articles and book chapters published, including pieces in The Routledge Handbook of Applied Communication Research, Communication Studies and the Journal of the Alliance of Black School Educators. She is also first editor of the recently published Routledge Handbook of Gender and Communication.
Dr. Niles Goins holds a Ph.D. and M.A. from Howard University in Organizational and Small Group Communication, and a bachelor’s degree in Communication from Oakwood College.
