Joan Neff
After an extensive, nationwide search, WVU Tech administration has announced the installment of Joan Neff as the University’s new provost.
Neff will oversee the institution’s academic efforts, working alongside the academic deans and faculty to maintain and enhance the quality of academic programs, implement innovation in the classroom and encourage the professional development of WVU Tech’s instructors.
Neff comes to Tech after serving as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia. Before her tenure at Longwood, she worked at the University of Richmond for more than 30 years, moving from professor to associate dean to department chair and eventually serving as assistant provost.
Campus President Carolyn Long praised Neff for her track record of enhancing the student experience and inspiring faculty.
“We’re very pleased to welcome Dr. Neff to the WVU Tech family. Her career in academic administration is marked with successes in faculty development, curriculum enrichment and student support. She’s engaging, dynamic and a great fit for the culture here at WVU Tech and the WVU System,” said Long.
Neff is excited to begin her work with the University this summer.
“I am extremely pleased to be joining the faculty, staff and students at West Virginia University Institute of Technology as the next Campus Provost and to continue WVU Tech’s forward momentum. As a long-time higher education faculty member and administrator, student success has always been my highest priority,” she said.
“Providing WVU Tech students with opportunities to develop their interests and enhance their future opportunities by working with Tech’s excellent faculty and staff is a high calling and one that I embrace wholeheartedly.”
Neff earned her undergraduate degree in sociology at the University of Delaware and both her master’s and doctorate in sociology at The Ohio State University. Her scholarly work includes detailed research and publications in criminology. In 2014, Neff received the Outstanding Victim Services Award from the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice for her work in training service providers to assist and support victims of crime.