Gwendolyn Boyd

Gwendolyn Elizabeth Boyd (born December 27, 1955) is an American scientist and university administrator. She served as president of Alabama State University from 2014 to 2016. Before entering administration, she worked as a mechanical engineer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.

Early life and education Boyd was born in Montgomery, Alabama, on December 27, 1955. She was orphaned at the age of thirteen, and then raised by her godmother, Emzella Mapson.

Boyd won a scholarship to Alabama State University, where she graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics.

In December 2013, Boyd's alma mater, Alabama State University, announced that she had been appointed as the university's next president, with a term beginning in February 2014. She became the first woman to hold the position. Her new contract contained a clause granting her right of residency in the president's house, but only if she did not "cohabitate with any person with whom she has a romantic relation", which attracted some public attention.

In November 2016, Boyd's presidency was suspended by the ASU board of trustees at a meeting which had initially been called to discuss the university's budget. The following month, the board voted 8–6 to terminate her contract, citing "failure to maintain the confidence of the board".

Honors Boyd has received honorary doctorates from Bennett College and Lincoln University. She served on the board of directors of Bennett College, the Children’s National Medical Center, Leadership Greater Washington, and the National Partnership for Community Leadership. She is an ordained itinerant elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church and belongs to the Ebenezer A.M.E Church in Fort Washington, Maryland.