Spelman president takes time off
Spelman College announced that Dr. Helene D. Gayle is taking a personal leave of absence as president and will be temporarily replaced by Rosalind Brewer, former CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, which owns Walgreens’ pharmaceutical chain based in Deerfield, Ill.
The Atlanta-based school did not provide a reason for Gayle’s decision to take a temporary leave of absence. Since July 1, 2022, she has been the 11th president of Spelman, which opened for Black women in 1881.
Gayle is an epidemiologist with a master’s degree in public health who led an international anti-poverty organization and presided over Chicago Community Trust.
Brewer is a former chair of Spelman’s board of trustees and a limited partner with the Atlanta Falcons.
Brewer resigned after three years as CEO of Walgreens’ as the result of a mutual agreement with the company’s board due to declining profits and a shrinking stock price.