Titles

Provost and Executive Vice President, UMB

Dean, Graduate School

School Affiliation

School of Graduate Studies

Specialties

• Institutional Effectiveness
• Leadership and Organizational Behavior

About

Dr. Ward was named UMB provost and executive vice president in October 2021 after serving in interim roles since January 2020, when he also was named dean of the Graduate School. These are the latest in a series of upward moves for Dr. Ward at UMB. He was promoted to senior vice president for operations and institutional effectiveness in January 2018, serving as UMB’s chief operating officer and directing departments and initiatives that promote institutional effectiveness and assure accountability including human resources, strategic planning, enterprise risk management, and institutional accreditation. In addition, he oversaw areas that promote University compliance and transparency, including the offices of research integrity, conflict of interest, human research protections, and education and equal access. On the academic side, Dr. Ward is dean of the Graduate School after serving as vice dean, where he was responsible for building graduate programs that are self-sustaining and responsive to evolving needs of the health and human services workforce in the state. Dr. Ward joined UMB in March 2009 as the associate vice president for academic and student affairs. He served as chief academic officer and interim dean of the Graduate School during the 2011-2012 academic year. In June 2012, Dr. Ward was named UMB’s first chief accountability officer and was promoted to vice president for academic affairs in October 2013 and to vice president of operations and planning in June 2015. He served as interim chief human resources officer from October 2014 to November 2015. Before joining UMB, Dr. Ward served as assistant vice president for student affairs at the New School in New York and also held senior administrative positions in the City University of New York system. Dr. Ward holds an associate’s degree in data processing/computer programming from Kingsborough Community College, a bachelor’s degree in government and a master’s in public administration, both from John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He holds a Doctor of Law degree from New York Law School and a Master of Science in Law (cybersecurity) from Maryland Carey Law. Dr. Ward also holds a Doctor of Education degree in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania. He has been teaching on-site, online, and in a blended environment since 2004 and has taught graduate courses in ethics, the history of higher education, leadership and organizational behavior, legal issues in higher education policy, and cybersecurity policy, among others.

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This information was last updated May 17, 2023.