Renia Dotson, C’88, elected chair of the Board of Regents
September 16, 2024
At their meeting on Sept. 12, the University’s Board of Regents elected Dr. Renia Dotson, C’88, to serve a two-year term as chair. Dotson began her term on the Board of Regents in 2018 and was named vice chair in 2023. She succeeds Jim Folds, C’86, who served as chair from 2022 to 2024.
“Jim provided outstanding leadership for the Board of Regents over the past two years, a period that included transitions in University leadership and the Board's formal adoption of a new strategic plan for the University,” says Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen. “Renia is an experienced and effective leader, and I look forward to working alongside her as we continue to shape Sewanee’s future.”
Dotson currently serves as the director of the Center for Public Health Transformation at the Mississippi State Department of Health. Previously, she practiced general, and colon and rectal surgery for over 20 years in the Delta Health System. Her leadership in Mississippi healthcare includes roles on various boards and committees, including the Mississippi Board of Medical Licensure, the Mississippi Board of Nursing, and the Office of Mississippi Physician Workforce Advisory Board. She completed the Physician Leadership Academy at Mississippi State Medical Association and earned a Doctor of Distinction award. She is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American Medical Association.
A native of Monroeville, Alabama, Dotson graduated from the College in 1988 with a degree in biology. She received a medical degree from the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, and completed an M.P.H. in healthcare organization and policy and an M.B.A. at the University of Alabama, Birmingham. She resides in Greenville, Mississippi, with her husband, Dr. Wayne Dotson. They have two children.
“I am deeply humbled by and grateful for the opportunity to serve as the next chair of the Board of Regents of my alma mater,” says Dotson. “Sewanee is a place of great riches; its currency is relationships, which keep us deeply rooted in this place. As we move forward, Sewanee remains uniquely positioned to cultivate the minds and hearts of future leaders through its outstanding faculty and Episcopal heritage. I am very proud to be a part of that future.”
