Life
Ruth Simmons – Former Brown University president takes over at Prairie View A&M University
AP | Retired Brown University President Ruth Simmons is being installed as president of Prairie View A&M University, making her the first female leader of the school in Texas.
Simmons, who also was president at Massachusetts’ Smith College and served in executive positions at Princeton and Spellman College, came out of retirement to lead Prairie View A&M University – a public historically black university (HBCU).
Wright returned to teaching history last year after holding the top job for 14 years.
Simmons has been serving as interim president. She retired from Brown in 2012 after 11 years as the first black president of an Ivy League school and returned to her native Houston.
Prairie View, part of the Texas A&M University System, has about 8,700 students on its campus located 72 kilometers (45 miles) northwest of Houston.