Vicky M. Wilkins

Vicky M. Wilkins is an American public administration scholar and academic administrator serving as the acting provost of American University. She is a professor of public administration and policy and previously served as the dean of the American University School of Public Affairs from 2018 to 2023.

Wilkins earned a B.S. in political science and history from Northern Michigan University.^[1] She completed a M.S. in human resource management from Chapman University and a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Missouri.^[1]

Wilkins worked for almost eleven years as a faculty member at the University of Georgia.^[2][3] She was the graduate coordinator and director of the M.P.A. program.^[2][3] In 2014, Wilkins became the senior associate dean of the American University School of Public Affairs (SPA).^[2] In 2017, she served as the president of the public administration section of the American Political Science Association.^[2] On July 3 that year, she became the interim dean of SPA, succeeding Barbara Romzek.^[2] She became its dean in 2018.^[4][3] Wilkins is also a professor of public administration and policy.^[4] She researches representative bureaucracy, bureaucratic discretion, race and gender, and human resource management.^[4] In 2021, Wilkins was elected a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.^[3]

On July 1, 2023, Wilkins succeeded Peter Starr as the acting provost of American University.^[5]