Cleopas Samudzi

Dr. Cleopas Samudzi is the present Dean of the Missouri Academy, and has been since February of 2004.

Education

• BA in Biology (Minor: Chemistry) from Dakota Wesleyan University
• MS in Biology and Crystallography from University of Pittsburgh (1983)
• PhD in Biology and Crystallography from University of Pittsburgh (1990)

Work History

• 1983 - 1989 Community College for Allegheny County - Part-time professor of biology and chemistry
• 1989 - 1993 National Cancer Institute - Associate Scientist in molecular pharmacology
• 1991 - 1992 Shepherd College (now Shepherd University) - Part-time adjunct professor of physics
• 1993 - 1998 University of Missouri - Columbia - Assistant professor of biochemistry and chemistry
• August 1998 - January 2004 Missouri Department of Higher Education
  • Senior Associate for Academic Affairs and Planning
  • Commissioner’s Associate for Life Sciences
  • Director of the Improving Teacher Quality Professional Development Program

Student Impressions

Superficially, Cleo is a short, tubby, black man with a short Afro and a Jamaican accent. Unfortunately, student encounters with him tend to be precisely that: superficial. Occasionally he might say something worth listening to, but he has a way of speaking that placates the listener with disinterest. He has an apparent lack of respect for any opinions that run counter to his own, and little to no regard for any traditions that don't fit with his vision of what the Academy should be. I don't mean simply to insult him; I have deleted several lines that amounted to no more than that. However, I have very little positive to say about the man. His recruitment efforts seem to be more effective than those of his predecessor, and that is no bad thing. I think he genuinely cares about the future of the Academy, but I do not like what he is turning it into. It was a refuge for students that felt stifled or impeded by traditional schools, but under his leadership it is becoming more a college fast-track program. I think perhaps for many, myself included, Cleo's administration is a symbol of the death of the idealism present in the earlier years, and his willingness to break so cleanly from past policies made him an easy target. Even understanding that, it is difficult to like him. -Chris Johnson, Discoverer

Sources

Missouri Academy Staff Page