Maria Tapias Selected for Leadership Academy

Maria Tapias, associate dean of Grinnell College, is one of 28 mid-level administrators in higher education nationwide selected by the Council of Independent Colleges to participate in a year-long Senior Leadership Academy.

The program, which is for administrators in higher education who are nominated by their institutions, is designed to prepare prospective leaders to assume positions as the chief officers in higher education. As a program participant, Tapias will hone her campus leadership skills by developing a professional experience plan and attending two seminars held in the Washington, D.C., area.

Tapias, who holds degrees in cultural anthropology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, serves in several capacities at Grinnell. In the office of the dean, she serves as associate dean of the College and the president’s senior adviser for diversity.  She is also associate professor of anthropology, having taught in the anthropology department since 2001.

During her time at Grinnell, Tapias has served in numerous roles, including interim chair of the department of Spanish, chair of the department of anthropology, and chair of the Latin American studies concentration. She was a visiting scholar at the Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies at the University of California-San Diego in 2004. Her research interests include women’s and infants’ health, the anthropology of emotions, transnationalism, and Latin American studies.

Tapias was selected to participate in the program from a diverse pool of applicants. “Competition for the available places in the program was intense,” says Richard Ekman, president of the Council for Independent Colleges, “and the review committee and I believe that Ms. Tapias has the potential for highly effective leadership in a position of senior responsibility on campus.”