Kevin D. Rome Sr. (born May 29, 1966) is an American university administrator. He served as the 16th president of

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

, a historically black university in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. He was previously the president of Lincoln University from 2013 to 2017.

Early life

Kevin Darnell Rome was born May 29, 1966. He was educated at the Spencer High School in

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it ...

. He graduated from

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in English in 1989. He earned a Master's degree of Education in College Student Personnel from the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

in 1991 and a PhD in Higher Education Administration from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

in 2001.

Career

Rome was assistant vice chancellor for student life and diversity at

Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th st ...

, vice president for campus life at

Clayton State University Clayton State University is a public university in Morrow, Georgia. It serves Atlanta metropolitan area, Metro Atlanta and is a selective Senior Unit of the University System of Georgia. The main campus includes of wooded grounds, featuring fiv ...

, and vice president for student services at Morehouse College. He was also the vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management at

North Carolina Central University North Carolina Central University (NCCU or NC Central) is a public historically black university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by James E. Shepard in affiliation with the Chautauqua movement in 1909, it was supported by private funds from b ...

until 2013. Rome was the president of Lincoln University from 2013 to 2017. During his tenure, he focused on rebranding the school and recruiting students from all over Missouri, especially "better-prepared students." In November 2016, he urged students to focus on building careers and pursuing leadership positions instead of protesting. Rome succeeded Frank L. Sims as the 16th president of Fisk University in June 2017. Rome separated from Fisk prior to the false allegations, however the announcement coincided with the allegations. August 2020, following the filing of a restraining order alleging that he had threatened a man that he had an intimate relationship with. The man also alleged that Rome drugged him. Rome and his attorney stated the allegations were false and no official charges were filed against Rome at the time of his removal. The accuser disappeared after the false allegations and never appeared for court. The charges were dismissed and expunged.

Personal life

Rome is a lifetime member of

Phi Beta Sigma Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. It was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914, by three young African-American male students with nine other Howard students as char ...

. Rome and his wife, Stefanie Baker Rome, have twins; son, Kevin and daughter Kendel. He met his wife in 2000 on a blind date in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, where he traveled to be a contestant on ''Wheel of Fortune'' and won $5,000.

References

Living people 1960s births Morehouse College alumni University of Georgia alumni University of Texas at Austin College of Education alumni Lincoln University (Missouri) faculty Presidents of Fisk University African-American academics American academic administrators African-American educators 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people {{US-academic-administrator-stub