President James Danko announced Barnett’s departure via email to the Butler community on Dec. 11. Photo courtesy of Rollins College/Zach Stovall.
LEAH OLLIE | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF | lollie@butler.edu
Brooke Barnett, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, has been appointed president of Rollins College. In an email on Dec. 11, President James Danko announced to the campus community that Barnett will begin her new role in July of 2025, continuing to serve as Provost at Butler until that date.
Today, Dec. 11, Barnett and her husband Tom Mould, professor of anthropology and chair of the Department of History, Anthropology and Classics, participated in the announcement of her new position in Winter Park, Florida. There, Rollins’ board of trustees voted her in as president-elect.
While the decision to leave Butler was difficult, Barnett decided it was the right choice, emphasizing the collegial and collaborative atmosphere at Rollins.
“I really love Butler and it was hard to think about leaving,” Barnett said. “But ultimately, the position, the perspectives and ability to be closer to my family, who live in Florida, all were really appealing.”
Barnett was appointed provost following a national search and tenure as interim provost in 2021, both following her first role at Butler as dean of the College of Communication in 2018. In advancing academic affairs, prioritizing first-year experience initiatives and overseeing the expansion of new academic programs such as Butler’s nursing program and Founder’s College, Barnett played a key role in Butler’s academic strategy and expansion.
Director of Strategic Communication Mark Apple attributed Barnett’s next steps at Rollins to her status as both a leader and academic.
“[Barnett] has had a tremendous impact, both as a dean for the College of Communication and the Provost,” Apple said. “If you talk to the deans of the colleges, I think they will all have wonderful things to say about her … She’s just been so great for Butler. I think that’s reflected in the fact that another school has chosen her to be their president.”
Danko also announced that Mould would be transitioning roles alongside Barnett to serve as faculty in the Anthropology department at Rollins College next fall. Mould currently co-chairs the Taskforce for Indigenous Engagement and Inclusion, and has taught at Butler since 2019.
Barnett’s departure follows the November exit of former Vice President for Student Affairs Frank Ross, concluding his seven-year tenure at Butler. Danko said that the coming months would yield more details about the process of identifying Butler’s next provost, a process that Apple said has not been determined yet.
Managing Editor Aidan Gregg contributed reporting to this article. The Butler Collegian will continue to cover this ongoing search, as well as additional leadership changes at the university level.
