CBU names Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

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Apr 01, 2015, 01:27 ET

RIVERSIDE, Calif., April 1, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Charles D. "Chuck" Sands, founding dean of the College of Allied Health and professor of public health at California Baptist University, has been named Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs effective July 1, 2015.

Sands was selected from scores of applicants following a months-long nationwide search. He succeeds Dr. Jonathan K. Parker, who announced last December that he will return to full-time classroom teaching after serving 15 years as Vice President for Academic Affairs.

"We are very pleased that Dr. Sands is joining the executive leadership team at California Baptist University," said Dr. Ronald L. Ellis, CBU president. Ellis noted that Sands brings a proven track record of academic leadership in faith-based higher education to his new position as well as demonstrated entrepreneurial ability and a keen global awareness.

Sands was raised in South Korea where his parents served as missionaries. That experience has influenced him throughout his career. Since 1992 he has traveled more than two dozen times to South Korea, North Korea and China on a variety of educational and service-related projects.

"I believe that Chuck's background, experience and skills will make a significant contribution as we continue to build CBU's strong academic programs and global impact," Ellis said.

Sands received his Bachelor of Science in Education from Samford. He received a Master of Arts in Education and Ph.D. in Public Health from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Before beginning his duties as Dean of the College of Allied Health at CBU in July 2010, Sands held a succession of teaching and administrative positions at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. Hired as an instructor in Samford's Department of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine in 1999, he eventually achieved the rank of associate professor. He also served as a Fellow in the Department of Pediatrics in the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine and has held adjunct academic appointments in the McWhorter School of Pharmacy at Samford and the Department of Health Education at UAB.

In 2007, Sands attended the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University, earning a Certificate in the Management Development Program. From 2007 to 2010 Sands was associate dean of Samford's Orlean Bullard Beeson School of Education and Professional Studies.

Sands' previous experience in health care includes working four years at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham, Ala., where he rose to the position of manager of outpatient rehabilitation.

He recently completed a 2-year appointment to the Governing Council of the American Public Health Association and is active in numerous professional and community organizations. He currently serves as a Board member for Riverside Community Hospital; the American Heart Association, Inland Southern California Division; Partners in Medicine; the Inland Empire Coalition for Health; and Sandals Church.

Sands said he is "very, very excited" about taking on the role of Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at CBU.

"I am pleased to have this opportunity and I look forward to the continuing growth of the university and development of new programs that will further enhance the quality and reputation of CBU," Sands said.

California Baptist University currently offers 25 master's degree programs and more than 90 undergraduate majors and concentrations.

Founded in 1950, CBU is a private comprehensive institution located in Riverside, California and affiliated with California Southern Baptist Convention. Fall 2014 enrollment at CBU totaled 7,957 students, marking the institution's 14th consecutive year of growth.

CBU is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, the International Association of Baptist Colleges and Universities, and the Consortium for Global Education.

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SOURCE California Baptist University