A new chancellor has been named to lead Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, after a six-month search. Francis K. Achampong, who had been named interim chancellor, has now been selected to that post on a permanent basis. His tenure as chancellor is effective Nov. 1.
In March, Achampong, who was serving as director of academic affairs at Penn State Mont Alto, was named to oversee campus operations on an interim basis following the unexpected death of former Chancellor Emmanuel I. Osagie.
"Dr. Achampong is an effective leader and has a great understanding of Penn State and its campuses," said President Graham B. Spanier. "His transition to the Fayette campus should be seamless, and the community will benefit from his familiarity with the campus and his knowledge of higher education."
Since 2002, Achampong has served as director of academic affairs for Penn State Mont Alto, where he also holds the rank of tenured professor of business law. As the chief academic officer for that campus, he oversaw programming, including program planning, development, assessment and accreditation, faculty recruitment, mentoring, evaluation, promotion and tenure, and other wide-ranging areas of academic responsibilities.
He served in 2008-09 as a Fellow of the American Council on Education at Shepherd University in West Virginia shadowing the president and executive staff there. Before his position at Mont Alto, Achampong served as interim dean of the School of Business at Norfolk State University from 2001-02.
For three years from 1998 to 2001, he was head of the Department of Entrepreneurship, Finance and Marketing at Norfolk State and from 1992 to 2002 was professor of business law and insurance at that institution. Before 1992, he was an associate professor at Norfolk State for seven years.
Achampong holds a doctorate in law from the University of London and a master of laws degree from Georgetown University. He was admitted to the New York Bar in 1986, the Virginia Bar in 1988, and was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1990.
He is the author of the book "Workplace Sexual Harassment Law: Principles, Landmark Developments and Framework for Effective Risk Management" and a frequent contributor to law reviews and journals on a variety of topics, including tax reform, life insurance policies, sexual harassment and hostile work environments.
He has served as a staff editor since 2000 for the Atlantic Law Review and was an advisory editor for the Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship. He is a member of the Academy of Legal Studies in Business, the American Risk and Insurance Association and the Risk and Insurance Management Society.
Madlyn Hanes, vice president for Commonwealth Campuses, agreed that Achampong has provided excellent leadership in the interim period at Fayette and will be key to the continuing success of that campus.
“He brings not only knowledge of the campus and its broader community, but of the University," she said. "He has served or is serving on several key groups to advance the strategic direction of Penn State."