Walter Doyce Broadnax (October 21, 1944 – December 2, 2022) was an American academic administrator, educator, and university president. He was a Distinguished Professor of Public Administration at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, a role he held from 2008 until 2015. Prior to this appointment he served as the second president of Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, retiring after six years in July 2008. He held various roles in the federal government and as a state official.[1]

Walter Doyce Broadnax
2nd President of
Clark Atlanta University
In office
2002–2008
Preceded byThomas W. Cole Jr.
Succeeded byCarlton E. Brown
Distinguished Professor at Syracuse University
In office
2008 (2008)–2015
Personal details
Born(1944-10-21)October 21, 1944
Star City, Arkansas, U.S.
DiedDecember 2, 2022(2022-12-02) (aged 78)
Syracuse, New York, U.S.
SpouseAngel Wheelock Broadnax
Alma materWashburn University
University of Kansas
Syracuse University
ProfessionAcademic administrator, educator, university president

Biography

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Born October 21, 1944, in Star City, Arkansas, to a railroad man named Walter Broadnax and mother Mary Lee Broadnax, Broadnax attended Roosevelt Elementary School in Hoisington, Kansas. He graduated from Hoisington High School in 1962 as an outstanding senior. He earned his B.A. degree from Washburn University in 1967. A Ford Foundation Fellow, Broadnax earned his M.P.A. degree from the University of Kansas in 1969 and his Ph.D. from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs in 1975.[2][3]

From 1974 to 1975, Broadnax taught at Syracuse University and was a staff consultant to the New York State Department of Correctional Services. In 1976, he was appointed co-director, Joint International City Management Association/National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration, Urban Management Education Program, United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Washington, D.C. Until 1979, he was professor of public administration at the Federal Executive Institute while teaching at the University of Virginia, Howard University and the University of Maryland. He also worked as director of Services to Children, Youth and Adults for the State of Kansas in Topeka. Broadnax joined the Carter administration in 1980 as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare. He was senior staff member for the Advanced Study Program of the Brookings Institution. In 1981, he joined Harvard Kennedy School, where he chaired the Massachusetts Executive Development Program and was founding director of the innovations in state and local government programs. In 1987, Broadnax was appointed president of the New York Civil Service Commission. He worked as adjunct professor of Public Policy at the University of Rochester from 1990 to 1993. In 1992, he served on the Harvard South Africa Program team and as a transition team leader for President Bill Clinton. In 1993, he served as president of the Center for Governmental Research, and from 1993 to 1996, Broadnax worked as Deputy Secretary and COO of the United States Department of Health and Human Services under Donna Shalala. He also worked as a professor at the University of Maryland and Dean of the School of Public Affairs at American University.[4]

In 2002, Broadnax became the second president of Clark Atlanta University, after Thomas W. Cole Jr.[5] Under his leadership, Clark Atlanta University became the second private historically Black College or university classified as a RU/H: Research Universities (high research activity) institution by the Carnegie Foundation.[6] Howard University is the first RU/H: Research Universities (high research activity).

Broadnax served on Colin Powell's U.S. Secretary of State management advisory board, Comptroller General of the United States David Walker's advisory board and NASA's Return to Flight Task Force.

Personal life and death

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Broadnax was married to Angel L. Wheelock and had a daughter named Andrea.[6][3]

Broadnax died in Syracuse, New York, on December 2, 2022, at the age of 78.[6][7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Edmond, Beverly C.; Finnell, Ron W. (3 November 2016). Trailblazing African American Public Administrators. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781317293385.
  2. ^ Korey, Eileen (10 January 2023). "In Memoriam: Life Trustee Walter Broadnax G'75". Syracuse University News. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  3. ^ a b "The HistoryMakers video oral history with Walter Broadnax". Chicago, Illinois: The HistoryMakers. 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Public Service Stories: Walter D. Broadnax". Health and Human Services. University of Nebraska Omaha. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  5. ^ "School president stays optimistic". The Augusta Chronicle. 11 June 2007. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  6. ^ a b c Harrison, Isheka N. (7 December 2022). "Dr. Walter D. Broadnax, Second President Of Clark Atlanta University, Passes Away At 78". Moguldom. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  7. ^ "Walter Broadnax Obituary (1944–2022) - Legacy Remembers". Legacy.com. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
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