Brenau hires Krippel as new provost

GAINESVILLE - Brenau University has hired a new provost to replace the retiring Jim Southerland.

Dr. Nancy Krippel, currently an executive at Mary Baldwin College in Virginia, will take over as Brenau's top academic officer on July 5.

She was introduced Friday to the Brenau Board of Trustees, making her first appearance on the Gainesville campus.

Krippel said she was attracted to the Brenau job by a number of factors.

"The women's college, the adult undergraduate programs, the graduate programs and the added online programs that Brenau is developing and has developed," she said.

Krippel said she knows that Brenau's traditional past must meld with the future of higher education, particularly for the growing population of non-traditional students.

"These are people who are employed, have families, are caring for elderly parents... they need flexibility in their educational programs," she said.

In the months before she takes over the provost position, Krippel said she'll spend time learning Brenau's campus and students, as well as making herself