Dr. Marvalene Hughes, the first woman to serve as president of Dillard University and the leader who guided the institution through the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, died January 3 in Tuskegee, Alabama. She was 88.
A two-time graduate of Tuskegee University and the first African American to earn a Ph.D. in counseling and administration from Florida State University, Hughes became Dillard’s sixth president in July 2005—just weeks before Katrina flooded the New Orleans campus with more than ten feet of water, destroyed residence halls, and caused an estimated $400 million in damage.
Hughes quickly ordered a campus evacuation and secured emergency transportation ahead of the storm. In the months that followed, she arranged for Dillard to hold classes at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside Hotel while the campus was rebuilt. During her first year, she raised more than $34 million for recovery—more than any previous annual fundraising total in the school’s history.
Former Dillard president Dr. Walter Kimbrough credited Hughes with leading the university’s revival, saying many doubted it could survive.
Before Dillard, Hughes held leadership roles at multiple universities and served as president of California State University, Stanislaus, from 1994 to 2005. In 2007, she launched Dillard’s first capital campaign, raising more than $60 million for scholarships, facilities, and endowment growth.
Her legacy is one of steady leadership in a moment of crisis—and proof of what courageous leadership can make possible.