Simmons to Be Permanent President of Prairie View

The first African-American to lead an Ivy League institution will soon be the permanent president at Prairie View A&M University, a historically black university in Texas enrolling more than 8,700 students.

Ruth J. Simmons, who has been Prairie View A&M’s interim president since July, was named the sole finalist for the position Thursday by the Texas A&M System Board of Regents. She will be Prairie View A&M’s eighth president.

Simmons served as Brown University’s president from July 2001 to June 2012. She has also been president of Smith College, vice provost at Princeton University and provost at Spelman College.