AURORA, N.Y. — Wells College has appointed Susan Henking as its new VP for academic and student affairs. Henking, who starts her position on July 1, was selected after a comprehensive national search that began last fall. She succeeds Cindy J. Speaker, provost and dean of the college, who will be leaving Wells at the […]
AURORA, N.Y. — Wells College has appointed Susan Henking as its new VP for academic and student affairs.
Henking, who starts her position on July 1, was selected after a comprehensive national search that began last fall. She succeeds Cindy J. Speaker, provost and dean of the college, who will be leaving Wells at the end of this academic year, according to a March 3 news release from the college.
Henking is a teacher–scholar in religious studies whose work has focused on cultural understandings of American religion, as well as the theoretical and conceptual relation of religion to gender and sexuality.
For more than 25 years, she taught in the Department of Religious Studies at Hobart and William Smith (HWS) Colleges and was named professor emerita of religious studies in 2015. During her time at HWS, Henking also served in numerous other roles, including multiple stints as department chair; interim dean of the faculty (1998–2000); and acting provost and dean of the faculty (2000–01). She also co-founded Hobart and William Smith’s LGBT studies program, the first standalone program of its kind in the country, and served as its chair for more than a decade.
In 2012, Henking became president and CEO of Shimer College, a small college then located on the south side of Chicago which became part of Naperville’s North Central College in 2017. In 2017, she was named president emerita and also received an honorary doctorate in recognition of her service to the institution. From 2019-2021, Henking served as interim VP of academic affairs and student affairs, and later president, at Salem Academy and College, one of the oldest women’s colleges in the U.S.
“Dr. Henking’s leadership style and career path make her an exemplary choice for Wells College,” Jonathan Gibralter, president of Wells College, said. “As a seasoned faculty member who has held a wide variety of leadership roles, she is well prepared to meet the specific needs of our College and its entire community.”
Henking earned a bachelor’s degree in religion and sociology from Duke University. She later earned her master’s degree at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where she also obtained her Ph.D. in religion and psychological studies.
Wells College is a private, coeducational liberal-arts college located in Aurora, on the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake. It has dozens of majors and minors available in the sciences, arts, humanities, and pre-professional programs.