DeLongpré Johnston named VP for human resources and sustainability
Wake Forest University has appointed Dedee DeLongpré Johnston as vice president for human resources and sustainability, effective October 1. In this role, she will lead the University’s talent functions, including recruitment, campus engagement, compensation and benefits, professional development, HR operations and HR information systems.
DeLongpré Johnston will continue to lead the Office of Sustainability as vice president and chief sustainability officer. She has served as interim chief human resources officer since April 2020.
“I cannot imagine a more difficult time to be a university human resources leader,” said Hof Milam, executive vice president, “but Dedee’s management style, organizational skills and knack for thinking broadly about the university have been the perfect complement to a talented, dedicated human resources team in seeing us through the last six months.”
For more than a decade, DeLongpré Johnston has led the first campus-wide Office of Sustainability. Under her leadership, the university earned a STARS Gold rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). In her previous role as director of the University of Florida’s Office of Sustainability, she was awarded the President’s Medallion for her leadership. She brings more than 20 years of nonprofit management experience, from fund and board development to organizational strategy, change management and assessment.
“In addition to the privilege of leading a very talented HR team in their core functional areas, I’m looking forward to working collaboratively with stakeholders across campus to integrate the institution’s core values into the full employee experience and to explore the ways we can foster engagement and a true sense of belonging,” said DeLongpré Johnston. Read more
Categories: Faculty News, Inside WFU, Staff News, University Announcement
Chief Human Resources Officer to leave for new position
Carmen Canales, Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, has accepted a position as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer for the Novant Health system. She will join Novant Health next month. A search for her replacement will begin after the COVID-19 crisis passes. In the interim, Dedee DeLongpre-Johnston, Chief Sustainability Officer, will assist Hof Milam, Executive Vice President in providing leadership and oversight of Human Resources.
Canales, who came to Wake Forest in 2011, has led the University’s talent functions, including recruitment, campus engagement, compensation and benefits, professional development, HR operations, and HR information systems. Across each of these areas, she has helped further the University’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and belonging.
“Carmen has had a tremendous impact by positioning Human Resources as a strategic partner for the University,” said Executive Vice President Hof Milam. “Her transformative leadership has made it possible to advance our important talent management work in collaboration with our schools and departments.”
During her time here, Carmen has led the expansion of a comprehensive benefits package, adding inclusive offerings such as gender reassignment coverage and student debt counseling, while increasing retirement plan participation by 55 percent. She also enhanced the faculty, staff, and retiree recognition events with an emphasis on authentic appreciation.
Early in her time at Wake Forest, Canales formed the Leadership Summit, which brings together academic and administrative leaders for professional development and collaboration. This program has featured internal and external experts on topics including innovation, tradition, change management, and friendship. Her vision for developing colleagues across the University also resulted in “Leading at Wake,” a series that focuses on creating a culture of engagement and belonging.
“It has been a privilege to serve the diverse Wake Forest community,” Canales said. “The Human Resources team is talented, thoughtful, and dedicated, and will continue to collaborate with and support staff and faculty colleagues.”
Categories: Inside WFU, Staff News, University Announcement
Davis organizes cleanup of historic cemetery
On Feb. 22, Wake Forest volunteers and other members of the community worked together to clean Odd Fellows Cemetery at an event organized by David Davis, manager of landscaping services.
Odd Fellows was created in 1911 and served as the only burial site for black residents for years. Since the 1950s, the cemetery has fallen into disrepair.
Davis organized the service project through the North Carolina Branch of the Professional Grounds Management Society. He was inspired by the story of Deltra Bonner, whose aunt’s gravesite was recently rediscovered.
“I felt led to do something,” Davis said.
Volunteers sowed grass, planted 2,500 flower bulbs and cleared away litter. They also worked to remove a tree that fell last June.
James Clyburn, president of the Friends of Odd Fellows Inc., appreciated the volunteers’ efforts. “It’s very exciting to see people to come out and help clean up a cemetery that’s been in disarray for over 30 to 40 years,” he said.
Derrick Boone, associate dean for the Masters of the Arts in Management program at the University, brought his son to the event to teach him the value of service and history. Dedee Johnston, director of the Wake Forest Office of Sustainability, organized students to volunteer at the event. “This is a culturally significant site,” she said. “This is a great opportunity to bring some dignity back to the space.”
Read the full story in the Winston-Salem Journal.
Categories: Faculty News, Staff News
Johnston active at national sustainability conference
Dedee DeLongpre Johnston, the director of sustainability, presented two workshops at the annual Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) conference in Nashville, Tenn., in October. last week. The conference theme was “Resiliency and Adaptation.”
Johnston also served as the emcee for the conference. Her workshops were:
- “STARS Introductory Workshop: Learning the Basics of Completing a Comprehensive Campus Sustainability Assessment”
- “From the Ground Up: Strategies for Building a New Sustainability Program”
Categories: Staff News
Johnston featured on CNBC.com
Dedee DeLongpre Johnston, director of sustainability, was featured in a story on CNBC.com (Feb. 14, 2011) about businesses creating employee teams to create eco-friendly workplaces. “It’s become part of our jobs to take time to think creatively about sustainability,” she says. Read the full story.
Categories: Staff News
