Spelman Taps Roboticist Ayanna Howard as 12th President

Spelman College, America’s highest-ranked historically black college for women, is looking to the future by appointing a pioneer of the present. On August 1, 2026, Dr. Ayanna Howard – a renowned roboticist, artificial-intelligence expert, and former NASA engineer – will become the institution’s 12th president.

Howard’s arrival signals a strategic pivot for the Atlanta-based college, merging its storied liberal-arts traditions with the imperatives of a tech-driven economy.

Currently the dean of engineering at Ohio State University, she co-founded Zyrobotics and Black in Robotics. Her deep expertise in human-centered technology positions Spelman to better prepare Black women for an evolving, automated workforce.

She succeeds Rosalind Brewer, who has steadied the college as interim president. Howard inherits an institution with formidable momentum. Spelman has held the number-one HBCU ranking from U.S. News & World Report for 19 consecutive years and remains a top producer of Black women earning STEM doctorates.

A celebrated figure in higher education and industry, Dr. Howard serves on the boards of Brown University, Autodesk, and Motorola Solutions. Her selection concludes a rigorous national search, tasking her with completing “Spelman Forward,” a major strategic fundraising campaign, while ensuring the college’s legacy of social mobility endures in an algorithmic age.