Florida State University President Richard McCullough today announced the appointment of Professor and Dean of the College of Social Work James J. Clark as the university’s next provost and executive vice president for academic affairs.
Clark has been a professor and dean of the FSU College of Social Work since July 2015. He begins as provost Jan. 3.
He succeeds Sally McRorie, who returns to the faculty after seven years in the role. Clark was one of three finalists chosen by the Provost’s 20-member Selection Advisory Committee following an internal selection process.
“Jim Clark is an innovative thinker, a renowned scholar and researcher, and an effective administrator,” said McCullough. “His leadership experience, track record of excellence, and strategic vision make him the right choice to lead FSU’s academic enterprise. I look forward to working closely with Jim to advance FSU’s strategic goals and continue our upward trajectory.
As provost, Clark will serve as Florida State’s academic director, the university’s second-highest-ranking officer. It will oversee academic affairs, including all colleges, centers, institutes and academic services; the Office of Faculty Development and Advancement; The doctoral school; the Division of Undergraduate Studies; and The Ringling, the State Art Museum of Florida. In this role, Clark will work with the university’s deans, faculty, and administrators to advance the university’s academic mission and enhance the institution’s national and international reputation.
“It is an honor to be chosen as the next provost and executive vice president of academic affairs at Florida State University – a college community that I have come to love through my experiences as dean of the College of Social Work. “Clark said. “Through university-wide collaborations, I have come to appreciate the deep levels of talent, collaboration and commitment across the university. I am delighted to work with President McCullough and am confident that we will elevate FSU to even greater heights.
During Clark’s tenure, the College of Social Work experienced tremendous growth and increased its presence statewide and nationally through scholars, research, outreach, and service. The college has developed significant centers and institutes in the areas of criminal justice research and development, family violence studies, trauma and resilience, addiction education, assessment multidisciplinary children and community innovations.
The FSU Student Resilience Project, created by the college through the Institute for Family Violence Studies and funded by the Provost’s Office, has gained national recognition for its role in helping students learn coping skills and of stress management. The web-based, research-based toolkit is now available to universities nationwide through a commercial license.
Last year, the Florida Legislature appropriated $10 million in recurring funds for the college’s Florida Institute for Child Welfare to transform the state’s child welfare workforce and improve outcomes for children and families.
Beyond the College of Social Work, Clark is active in many areas of the university. He holds a Presidential appointment to the FSU Athletics Association Board of Directors and is a member of the Provost’s Healthy Campus Task Force and the FSU Health Data Sciences Initiative. He currently chairs the search committee for the new VP Research and previously chaired the search committee that hired College of Fine Arts Dean James Frazier.
Prior to coming to FSU, Clark served as a professor and director of the School of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati College of Allied Health Sciences between 2012 and 2015.
Prior to his tenure at the University of Cincinnati, Clark held numerous faculty and administrative positions for 21 years at the University of Kentucky College of Social Work. He was the Constance Wilson Professor of Mental Health from 2006 to 2012, Associate Dean for Research from 2004 to 2012, and Director of the Doctoral Program from 2002 to 2004. He also held a joint appointment as Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine from 2000 to 2012.
Clark earned a doctorate in clinical social work from the University of Chicago in 1995, a master’s degree in social work from the University of Kentucky in 1983, and a bachelor of arts, summa cum laude, from Siena College in New York in 1980.
As a researcher, Clark works at the intersection of the justice, mental health and child protection systems. He has published in the areas of substance abuse, criminal justice, and childhood traumatic stress, and co-edited a book for the American Bar Association on best practices in mitigating the death penalty.
Throughout his career, Clark has designed and delivered behavioral health counseling and educational programs for judges, attorneys, and other court personnel. He was a member of the Justice Committee of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network from 2008 to 2012, a senior member of the National Research Integrity Task Force of the Council on Social Work Education from 2006 to 2012, and an appointed member of the National Federation of Clinical Social Work Forensic Social Work Committee from 2003 to 2007.
Clark is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, National Association of Social Workers, Council on Social Work Education, National Association of Deans and Directors of Schools of Social Work, Society for Personology, and the Society for Social Work. Work and research.
Clark is married to Elizabeth Croney, a social worker and entrepreneur. They have three adult daughters: Cameron, Meg and Pearson, who recently married Pierre Tribolet.
