Accomplished academic leader Dona Lantz named Provost at CCAD

Accomplished academic leader Dona Lantz will be the new Provost at Columbus College of Art & Design, starting in July.

Lantz comes to CCAD from the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, where she served as Associate Provost for Curriculum. Prior to that, for nearly a decade and a half, Lantz served as Academic Dean at Moore College of Art & Design in Philadelphia, where she led the development of three new BFA majors and five new graduate programs.

“Dona is a talented academic leader who has worked in higher education for more than three decades,” CCAD President Melanie Corn said. “She knows the ins and outs of the art and design academic world, and we’re excited to have her serving as the chief academic officer at CCAD.”

Lantz received a BS from the Department of Art at Illinois State University in 1977 and an MA from the University of California Berkeley, Department of Art in 1982. From 1983 to 1985, she was an instructor and the Photography Supervisor at the ASUC Studio on the Berkeley campus. In 1986, Lantz began working at the San Francisco Art Institute as the Photography Department Manager, and by 1987, she began teaching part-time in the Photography Department. In 1994, she became the Assistant Dean to Academic Affairs and continued teaching until her move to Philadelphia in 2001.

In addition to her work as an academic leader, Lantz has exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions. She has presented at conferences at Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan, Ireland, and at St. Anne’s College in Oxford, England. She has taught workshops in Mexico City and given artist talks in conjunction with her exhibitions. Since 2002, Lantz has served on nine visiting evaluation teams for the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and served as team chair on five of those visits. She is currently the Chair of the Nominations Committee for NASAD.

Lantz said she’s looking forward to joining CCAD and working on goals outlined in the new strategic plan that Dr. Corn unveiled in 2017.

“I’m very excited about the new strategic plan at CCAD, and I’m looking forward to working closely with Dr. Corn to help prepare graduates to shape culture and commerce,” Lantz said.