Greenwood / Asher & Associates Assists Clemson University with CHRO Search

July 30, 2021 – Miramar Beach, FL-based executive recruitment firm Greenwood /Asher & Associates has assisted in the recruitment of Ale Kennedy as the new associate vice president for human resources and chief human resources officer of Clemson University. “The university engaged a recruiting firm and conducted a rigorous national search to select our human resources leader,” said Max Allen, vice president and chief of staff, who also chaired the search committee. “I would like to thank the other members of the search committee for their work on this very important search, which gave us an opportunity to review close to 100 highly accomplished applicants.

“Serving as the interim CHRO for the past year, Ale brought more than two decades of HR leadership experience in higher education to help guide the university’s response to COVID-19,” Mr. Allen said. “She’s proven herself to be the leader for the times.”

“I would like to thank president James Clements, provost Robert Jones, general counsel Chip Hood and members of the executive leadership team for meeting with each of our finalists in a thorough evaluation of a very talented group of candidates,” said Tony Wagner, Clemson’s executive vice president of finance and operations. “Dr. Kennedy’s exceptional interim service during a very challenging time as well as her vision for the future of Clemson’s office of human resources elevated her candidacy, and I am delighted by her decision to accept the position.”

During her past five years at Clemson, Dr. Kennedy served in a variety of roles—most recently as the interim associate vice president for human resources and CHRO. Prior to joining Clemson in 2016, she was interim associate vice president for human resources at Georgia Southern University. Throughout her career, Dr. Kennedy has served on the College and University Professional Association for HR (CUPA-HR) and currently serves as a member of its national board. Dr. Kennedy received her undergraduate degree at Clemson University and went on the earn her doctorate in education with an emphasis in educational leadership from Georgia Southern University.

Clemson University, one of the country’s most selective public research universities, serves a uniquely driven and highly accomplished student body. Ranked as the 24th best national public university by U.S. News & World Report, Clemson is a science- and engineering-oriented college dedicated to teaching, research and service. Founded in 1889, the university is committed both to world-class research and a high quality of life. Clemson has 20,868 undergraduate and 5,538 graduate students. The university offers more than 80 majors and upwards of 90 minors. Its student-to-faculty ratio is 16:1.

A Women-Owned Search Firm

Greenwood / Asher & Associates is a women-owned executive search firm with a diverse consulting team and extensive experience in executive search, consulting and training for education markets including elementary, secondary, higher education, university systems, campuses and non-profit organizations including associations, service, and cultural institutions. The firm, led by founders and partners Jan Greenwood and Betty Turner Asher, was acquired in November by Kelly Education, a global leader in workforce management solutions offering staffing services to top companies.

Dr. Greenwood is a pioneer in U.S. higher education, as the first woman president of a public four-year and graduate institution in Virginia and as among the first to hold multiple presidencies for both public and private institutions. The library at one of these institutions is named in her honor. She was one of the earliest executive recruiters focused on education and non-profit organizations. Dr. Greenwood is a licensed psychologist with experience as a psychometrist and with post-doctoral training in group methods. She brings these skillsets to her work with clients, candidates, and search committees.

Ms. Asher was one of the first women to serve as president of a flagship institution. She brings to executive search, consulting and training a unique background of leadership service at all levels of higher education institutions and systems, in academics and student affairs and in public and private institutions. She has been a leader in executive search, consulting, and training for the past two decades. Ms. Asher has led more than 500 searches, most at the president/CEO level.

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media

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