TM² Executive Search Recruits Provost for Fort Valley State University
April 23, 2025 – TM² Executive Search (TM²), a subsidiary of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, has assisted in the recruitment of Derrick Scott as the new provost and vice president for academic affairs of Fort Valley State University (FVSU). The search was by TM² Executive Search’s managing principal, Dakota Doman, principal, Amanda Washington Lockett, and associate principal, Ndeh Anyu. “Dr. Scott is a transformational leader whose track record of advancing academic excellence, driving innovation, and championing access aligns perfectly with our university’s mission and vision,” said FVSU president Paul Jones. “His strategic insight and passion for innovation and student success will be instrumental as we chart the next chapter of our academic journey.”
A nationally recognized scholar, administrator, and leader, Dr. Scott brings a wealth of experience in bioinformatics, STEM education and health sciences, as well as a longstanding commitment to academic excellence, research innovation and community service. Currently, he serves as the dean of the College of Natural and Health Sciences and interim dean of the College of Agriculture at Virginia State University, where his leadership resulted in notable increases in student enrollment, retention and research productivity. His professional trajectory includes transformative leadership at Delaware State University, where he served as the founding executive director of the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory and director of the Center for Health Disparities.
“Fort Valley State University stands at the intersection of tradition and transformation,” said Dr. Scott. “I am committed to advancing Fort Valley State’s land-grant mission, strengthening its academic enterprise, and positioning FVSU as a national model for innovation, access and excellence in higher education.”
Fort Valley State University is a public land-grant historically black university in Fort Valley, GA. It is part of the University System of Georgia and a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Fort Valley State University is the state’s 1890 land-grant university and enrolls over 2,500 students.
TM² Executive Search specializes in providing exemplary executive talent acquisition consultation for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs), and other organizations looking to attract highly qualified, motivated, accomplished diverse candidates at all levels of the administration. The firm focuses on filling C-suite leadership positions, including presidents, chancellors and their cabinet-level direct reports, and board directorships. In 2016, four former black college presidents launched TM² Executive Search.
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Dr. Doman has over 15 years of executive higher education experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and Predominantly White Institutions at various Research Carnegie Classifications. He has served as an executive administrator, academician, strategist, policy analyst, governmental relations liaison, and researcher. Dr. Doman has presented over 75 presentations across the country on various higher education topics related to HBCUs, organizational leadership and change management, talent acquisition, and student success.
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Dr. Doman has served as a consultant, chair, or search advocate for over 50 executive searches in higher education throughout his career. He has coordinated executive searches at all levels of administration including president, provost, CFO, CTO, and chief student success/enrollment officer. He has considerable search experience in governance and policy organizations for State Higher Education Executive Officer (SHEEO) agencies such as the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board where he completed five executive searches.
Dr. Washington Lockett recently joined TM² as principal and senior consultant. She is a dedicated scholar-practitioner with over a decade of experience in higher education and strategy development. Dr. Washington Lockett’s research and practice focus on innovations in higher education, transformative leadership and institutional sustainability. She has served as a strategic advisor to the presidents of two Minority Serving Institutions and most recently served as a Strategist for the Institute for Capacity Building (ICB) at the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). In this role, she developed strategic priorities and initiatives that improved the sustainability and institutional outcomes of HBCUs.
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Beyond her experience in higher education, Dr. Washington Lockett has experience from the executive search industry. She honed her skills at True Search, where she was part of the people, talent, and legal team. In this role, she played a key part in connecting exceptional talent with leading organizations. Her placements included board members, C-suite executives, vice presidents, directors, and other strategic hires for both private and public companies.
Dr. Anyu has over a decade of experience spanning executive search, higher education, and corporate environments. His career began in higher education as assistant director at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Minority Serving Institutions, where he managed programs and developed initiatives for students, faculty, and administrators nationwide.
Dr. Anyu’s career in executive search started at Storbeck Search as a junior associate, supporting C-suite searches for educational and non-profit organizations. After Storbeck, he joined HTI/True Search as a senior associate leading dozens of executive level searches across diverse sectors including climate tech, edtech, and CEO & board practices.
Related: TM² Executive Search Fills Senior Position for Benedict College
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
