NEW LONDON, CT –August 13, 2021– Mitchell College recently welcomed Dr. Elizabeth Ann (Betsy) Beaulieu as vice president of academic affairs. She will oversee all academic areas of the college, including Thames at Mitchell, the Bentsen Learning Center and the Mystic Program. Beaulieu most recently served as interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of New Haven. Prior to that she was founding dean of the Core Division at Champlain College in Vermont, where she served for 11 years, and director of Women’s Studies at Appalachian State University in North Carolina. She has consulted on many areas of higher education, including general education reform and integrative teaching, learning and collaboration. Her research focuses on contemporary African American women writers. She holds a doctorate in 20th-century British and American literature from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, master’s degrees in literature from the University of York, England, and Georgetown University, and a bachelor’s degree from Providence College. Dr. Tracy Y. Espy, Mitchell College president, said, “We are so happy to welcome Dr. Beaulieu to Mitchell College. The breadth of her experience in interdisciplinary collaboration and new program development aligns perfectly with our innovative education model. Her leadership of Mitchell’s broad-reaching division of academic affairs will be invaluable as we build cross-disciplinary collaborations in our core curriculum and dynamic new concentrations of study.” Beaulieu said, “It is important to me to serve an institution committed to academic excellence, innovative pedagogy and robust student engagement. Mitchell College has a solid foundation in all three, and I look forward to finding ways to collaborate, innovate and inspire.”