Dr. Carol Ross-Black

Dean of Student Affairs, The American University of Kuwait

Educational Background:

Florida State University, Ed. D., 1983
Higher Education Administration

Boston University, M.Ed.

University of Maryland, B.S.

By Anna Hobby, M.S. (2007), Feb. 2007

“Never lose your passion for what you do,” Dr. Melvene Hardee told then student Dr. Carol Ross after a hard day in her doctoral career. Dr. Carol Ross has been living by these words ever since and her passion for students and student affairs has taken her on an amazing journey in her career. Dr. Ross’ discovery of her passion for student affairs was anything but typical; in fact she described herself as “not the best college student” because of the seven years it took her to earn her bachelor’s degree. Her father, who traveled extensively while working for the Department of Defense, moved her along with her mother to England in 1980. It was while living in England that the student affairs journey began.

Still not ready for college but needing something to do, Dr. Ross took a position with the City Colleges of Chicago in High Wycombe England at the Air Station. As a Field Registrar, she was responsible for setting course schedules, hiring faculty, and recruiting students, mainly military personnel. Before she even realized it, Dr. Ross had a gift for working with students in a student affairs setting. She remembered a time when her Director once told her she was too social, but being too social worked for Dr. Ross. She received a commendation from the City Colleges of Chicago for her work in increasing enrollment. After this experience

Dr. Ross decided it was time to finish her degree, and decided the fastest route would be to work towards a business degree at the University of Maryland- European Division (1985). She then completed her master’s degree in Human Services/Human Resource Education at Boston University European Division in Naples, Italy and returned to the states in 1987.

Dr. Ross began working in corporate America considering a career in training and development but higher education continued to call. She took a low paying, but internally rewarding Admissions Counselor position with the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic in Whittier California. At the urging of her Dean, she began her doctoral studies at the University of Southern California and found herself working as a Resident Coordinator with 14 resident advisors and over 200 students before heading east to FSU in 1989.

Dr. Ross recalls that the entering class of 1989 was extremely close; despite the bumps along the way, “We loved each other, studied together and made sure that everyone was okay.” At FSU, she worked in Community College Relations as Coordinator of Minority Student Recruitment and Retention and as Pan Greek Advisor in Student Life. As her time at FSU was coming to a close, Dr. Ross heeded some more advice from her mentor Dr. Hardee and her major professor Dr. Mann. They had advised her early on to keep her breadth of experience wide and not allow herself to be pigeonholed into one area of student affairs. While preparing for life after FSU, Dr. Ross noticed a posting for a Dean of Student Services position in Dyersburg, Tennessee.

Having never been to Tennessee but confident she could do the job, she applied. Sure enough, it was offered and she accepted. From Tennessee, she moved to Northern Virginia Community College-Annandale campus as the Dean of Student Development. However, because of such positive experiences in Florida, the ultimate goal was to be in the Florida

Community College system. Dr. Ross feels that the Florida Community College system is one of the best in the country. When an opportunity presented itself at Broward Community College in 1997, she took advantage and was hired as the Dean of Student Affairs for the Central campus. Although all of the previous experiences were important in her career, it is the Broward experience that she feels had the most profound impact in her journey.

While mentoring a former work-study student about careers in the Student Affairs profession, Dr. Ross repeatedly saw an announcement for a founding Dean of Student Affairs position with the American University of Kuwait in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Dr. Ross knew very little about the Middle East other than her father having worked there and her sister at the time served as the principal of the American School of Bahrain. She felt that the move to Kuwait would be a new adventure, allow her to be close to her sister and spiritually close to her father, who had passed away in 1999. She applied, was offered, packed up and moved to Kuwait in April 2004. Her daughter, Brittany, and her mother joined her in August 2004. Her fiancé also now works in Kuwait.

The American University of Kuwait, Kuwait’s first liberal arts university, opened its doors to its inaugural class in the Fall of 2004. She says that the most valuable experience, in preparing her for this portion of the journey, has been the community college experiences. At the community college, you must be able to do a bit of everything, where as at other types of institutions one is much more of a specialist. “I don’t believe I would have been able to contribute had it not been for my exposure and understanding not only Student Affairs but Academic Affairs, facilities, finance, technology and human resources. There is a great team here that had to build this institution from scratch. But those of us with American higher education experiences really had to step up to the plate.” Since opening in Fall 2004, AUK has grown to over 1,100 students. Dr. Ross also notes that as Dean of Student Affairs there are many challenges when implementing programs and services that integrate and engage students both academically and socially. The culture, traditions and nuances of Kuwait and the region sometimes pose obstacles that would not be faced in America. Although very western in many ways from fashion to fast food (there’s even a Krispy Kreme here!) to cable television, Student Affairs professionals cannot use the same bag of tricks like they used in the states.

Yet, students, according to Dr. Ross, have the same developmental issues, often more exaggerated, because of the lack of openness in addressing them. Dr. Ross applauds her Student Affairs team, both those that are the American trained and experienced as well as the Kuwaiti staff new to the Student Affairs profession) who live by the Division motto: “Student Affairs…Where University Comes to Life” and diligently serve the students and University. “If you look at our comprehensive student life, student success and testing programs and services, you will see we truly reflect the American tradition of Student Affairs.”

Dr. Carol, as she is known at AUK, is a dynamic and passionate student affairs professional. Her journey to discover her talent in the field of student affairs is fascinating and her lasting passion for what she does is admirable. Dr. Ross said that she feels students need to see “passion, energy, competence and caring,” and I have no doubt that the students of AUK see these characteristics in Dr. Carol every day.


				Dr. Carol Ross-Black Dean of Student Affairs, The American University of Kuwait Educational Background: Florida State University, Ed. D., 1983 Higher Education Administration Boston University, M.Ed. University of Maryland, B.S. ## By Anna Hobby, M.S. (2007), Feb. 2007 “Never lose your passion for what you do,” Dr. Melvene Hardee told then student Dr. Carol Ross after a hard day in her doctoral career. Dr. Carol Ross has been living by these words ever since and her passion for students and student affairs has taken her on an amazing journey in her career. Dr. Ross’ discovery of her passion for student affairs was anything but typical; in fact she described herself as “not the best college student” because of the seven years it took her to earn her bachelor’s degree. Her father, who traveled extensively while working for the Department of Defense, moved her along with her mother to England in 1980. It was while living in England that the student affairs journey began. Still not ready for college but needing something to do, Dr. Ross took a position with the City Colleges of Chicago in High Wycombe England at the Air Station. As a Field Registrar, she was responsible for setting course schedules, hiring faculty, and recruiting students, mainly military personnel. Before she even realized it, Dr. Ross had a gift for working with students in a student affairs setting. She remembered a time when her Director once told her she was too social, but being too social worked for Dr. Ross. She received a commendation from the City Colleges of Chicago for her work in increasing enrollment. After this experience Dr. Ross decided it was time to finish her degree, and decided the fastest route would be to work towards a business degree at the University of Maryland- European Division (1985). She then completed her master’s degree in Human Services/Human Resource Education at Boston University European Division in Naples, Italy and returned to the states in 1987. Dr. Ross began working in corporate America considering a career in training and development but higher education continued to call. She took a low paying, but internally rewarding Admissions Counselor position with the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic in Whittier California. At the urging of her Dean, she began her doctoral studies at the University of Southern California and found herself working as a Resident Coordinator with 14 resident advisors and over 200 students before heading east to FSU in 1989. Dr. Ross recalls that the entering class of 1989 was extremely close; despite the bumps along the way, “We loved each other, studied together and made sure that everyone was okay.” At FSU, she worked in Community College Relations as Coordinator of Minority Student Recruitment and Retention and as Pan Greek Advisor in Student Life. As her time at FSU was coming to a close, Dr. Ross heeded some more advice from her mentor Dr. Hardee and her major professor Dr. Mann. They had advised her early on to keep her breadth of experience wide and not allow herself to be pigeonholed into one area of student affairs. While preparing for life after FSU, Dr. Ross noticed a posting for a Dean of Student Services position in Dyersburg, Tennessee. Having never been to Tennessee but confident she could do the job, she applied. Sure enough, it was offered and she accepted. From Tennessee, she moved to Northern Virginia Community College-Annandale campus as the Dean of Student Development. However, because of such positive experiences in Florida, the ultimate goal was to be in the Florida Community College system. Dr. Ross feels that the Florida Community College system is one of the best in the country. When an opportunity presented itself at Broward Community College in 1997, she took advantage and was hired as the Dean of Student Affairs for the Central campus. Although all of the previous experiences were important in her career, it is the Broward experience that she feels had the most profound impact in her journey. While mentoring a former work-study student about careers in the Student Affairs profession, Dr. Ross repeatedly saw an announcement for a founding Dean of Student Affairs position with the American University of Kuwait in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Dr. Ross knew very little about the Middle East other than her father having worked there and her sister at the time served as the principal of the American School of Bahrain. She felt that the move to Kuwait would be a new adventure, allow her to be close to her sister and spiritually close to her father, who had passed away in 1999. She applied, was offered, packed up and moved to Kuwait in April 2004. Her daughter, Brittany, and her mother joined her in August 2004. Her fiancé also now works in Kuwait. The American University of Kuwait, Kuwait’s first liberal arts university, opened its doors to its inaugural class in the Fall of 2004. She says that the most valuable experience, in preparing her for this portion of the journey, has been the community college experiences. At the community college, you must be able to do a bit of everything, where as at other types of institutions one is much more of a specialist. “I don’t believe I would have been able to contribute had it not been for my exposure and understanding not only Student Affairs but Academic Affairs, facilities, finance, technology and human resources. There is a great team here that had to build this institution from scratch. But those of us with American higher education experiences really had to step up to the plate.” Since opening in Fall 2004, AUK has grown to over 1,100 students. Dr. Ross also notes that as Dean of Student Affairs there are many challenges when implementing programs and services that integrate and engage students both academically and socially. The culture, traditions and nuances of Kuwait and the region sometimes pose obstacles that would not be faced in America. Although very western in many ways from fashion to fast food (there’s even a Krispy Kreme here!) to cable television, Student Affairs professionals cannot use the same bag of tricks like they used in the states. Yet, students, according to Dr. Ross, have the same developmental issues, often more exaggerated, because of the lack of openness in addressing them. Dr. Ross applauds her Student Affairs team, both those that are the American trained and experienced as well as the Kuwaiti staff new to the Student Affairs profession) who live by the Division motto: “Student Affairs…Where University Comes to Life” and diligently serve the students and University. “If you look at our comprehensive student life, student success and testing programs and services, you will see we truly reflect the American tradition of Student Affairs.” Dr. Carol, as she is known at AUK, is a dynamic and passionate student affairs professional. Her journey to discover her talent in the field of student affairs is fascinating and her lasting passion for what she does is admirable. Dr. Ross said that she feels students need to see “passion, energy, competence and caring,” and I have no doubt that the students of AUK see these characteristics in Dr. Carol every day.