Fisk University picks longtime Nashville leader as next president

Fisk University has named Agenia Walker Clark as its next president.

The announcement came Tuesday from the school's board of trustees, bringing the yearlong search process to a close. Clark will take up her new post on Nov. 6, according to a news release from the board. She will be the 18th president of the school, and the third female to lead the institution. Fisk is among the highest ranked historically Black colleges and universities in the nation, the release said.

Clark has spent the last 19 years as the CEO of the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee, where she earned a long list of awards and recognition. Most recently, she was named “Nashvillian of the Year” in 2021 by the Nashville Business Journal. She is also an inductee in the Academy for Women of Achievement and a member of the International Women’s Forum.

From 2015: Girl Scout from poor neighborhood becomes Girl Scouts CEO

“To serve a new generation of brilliant, socially minded students — not unlike their counterparts of decades past, like W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, John Lewis and Dr. Diane Nash — is surely the honor of my lifetime,” Clark said in the release. “No institution of higher-ed has a richer legacy — or a richer promise for the future — than Fisk.”

Clark will replace interim president and board member Frank Sims, who took up the role in 2021.

“Dr. Clark’s lifelong dedication to improving the lives of young people, along with her unique combination of fundraising and brand-building skills, are exactly what Fisk needs today,” Juliette Pryor, who chairs the Fisk Board of Trustees, said in the release. “I know that Dr. Clark’s bold ideas will positively impact our campus community today while assuring a fast-growing trajectory for the future.”

Clark has long history of leadership

Clark has a bachelor's degree and a master's in business administration from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and went on to earn her doctorate in leadership at Vanderbilt University.

In her work with the Girl Scouts, Clark led the way to improve its efficiency, reserves, facilities and performance, according to the release.

She also currently sits on multiple boards, including FirstBank Financial Corporation, Belmont University and Simmons University. She is also a trustee emerita for the Haslam School of Business board at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

She previously served in roles that revolved around education and human resources, including work as the vice president of human resources for the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation and as senior director of human resources at Vanderbilt University.

She also worked in human resources and government relations for Canadian telecommunications company Nortel Networks. From 2015-2020, Clark was listed among "Nashville's 100 Most Powerful People" by the Nashville Business Journal and named as the "Person-In-Charge" from 2014-2021 by The Nashville Post.

She is also part of the 2016 class of Leadership Tennessee and the 1996 class of Leadership Nashville.

What's next for the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee

The Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee has hired executive search firm Grant Partners of Atlanta to search for a new CEO. The organization's chief operating officer, Pam Self, will serve as interim CEO. Clark called her nearly two decades of service a "joyous journey."

"The local Girl Scout Council offered me the opportunity to work with some of the best leaders in this community who have served on its board,” Clark said in a news release from the local council. “Without the board and the strength of the team who makes a difference every day, it would not be possible to serve more than 12,500 girls and 5,000 volunteers."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Fisk University names Agenia Walker Clark as next president