3/2/2023 - Jackson, Miss.

The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning has placed Thomas Hudson, President of Jackson State University, on administrative leave with pay, effective immediately, and named Dr. Elayne Hayes-Anthony as temporary acting president of JSU at its meeting held today in Jackson, effective immediately. Dr. Hayes-Anthony currently serves as Chair and Professor, Department of Journalism and Media Studies, at Jackson State University.

“We are grateful that Dr. Hayes-Anthony has agreed to serve as Acting President,” said Tom Duff, President of the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning. “As alumnus and long-time administrator and faculty member at the university, she understands the campus, its students, its challenges and opportunities.”

Dr. Hayes-Anthony has served as chair of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Jackson State University since 2015. She served as professor of Communications and chair of the Department of Communications at Belhaven University from 1998 until 2015.

Prior to her time at Belhaven, she served at JSU for 10 years, first as director of Graduate Studies for the Department of Mass Communications and later appointed head of the department. Under her leadership, the department received national accreditation from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Dr. Hayes-Anthony earned both her bachelor of science and master’s degrees at JSU, and obtained her Ph.D. in Organizational Communication Broadcast Law at Southern Illinois, Carbondale.

She has a distinguished career in broadcast journalism. A native of Jackson, she made a name for herself as the first African-American female news anchor on WJTV Channel 12. She was appointed assistant superintendent of public information for the Jackson Public School District and spokesperson for the Jackson School Board, before accepting the position at Belhaven.

She has received a number of accolades from her work and civic involvement, including being named the 2014 recipient of the Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher Award.

The Board of Trustees will discuss the future leadership of Jackson State at its regular Board meeting later this month.

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The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning governs the public universities in Mississippi, including Alcorn State University; Delta State University; Jackson State University; Mississippi State University including the Mississippi State University Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine; Mississippi University for Women; Mississippi Valley State University; the University of Mississippi including the University of Mississippi Medical Center; and the University of Southern Mississippi.

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