Shaping the Future of Women’s Education
Mary Dana Hinton, Ph.D., became the thirteenth president of Hollins University on Aug. 1, 2020. An active and respected proponent of the liberal arts and access, her leadership reflects a deep and abiding commitment to the education of women.
During her tenure, President Hinton has advanced the Hollins mission as one of the nation’s oldest institutions of higher education for women, championing initiatives that expand access, foster belonging, and prepare students for purposeful lives.
One of the defining moments of her presidency was a historic $75 million gift from an anonymous alumna, the largest single gift in the university’s history and, at the time, the largest ever received by a women’s college. It also ranks among the largest single donations ever given solely by a female donor and to a small liberal arts college.
This extraordinary gift established the Levavi Oculos Endowed Scholarship Fund, dedicated to funding scholarships and addressing financial need for undergraduate students. Unlike most major donations that are pledged over long periods, the gift is being contributed in $25 million increments to the university’s endowment over three fiscal years.
“This gift is such a profound and powerful statement about the value of higher education for women,” President Hinton noted. “The transformational educational opportunities created by it will have a visible and sustained impact for generations of women to come at Hollins. Most of all, this generosity will enable future students who otherwise would not be able to attend college to access that opportunity.”
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Driving a Bold Vision Forward
Under President Hinton’s leadership, Hollins University is charting an ambitious course for the future through the Transforming Learning, Transforming Lives: The Levavi Oculos Strategic Plan, unanimously approved by the Board of Trustees in 2023. Built on the interconnected pillars of Academic Excellence, Access, and Wellness, the plan sets a clear, achievable path to be fully realized by 2030.
President Hinton’s unwavering commitment to inclusion, opportunity, and holistic education is at the heart of this vision. By advancing integrative learning, expanding financial accessibility, and prioritizing community well-being, she is leading systemic academic renewal, removing barriers to college access, and cultivating a campus culture where all students — especially those historically marginalized — can flourish and lead in a rapidly changing world.
Expanding Access, Empowering Women
With the launch of the Hollins Opportunity for Promise through Education (HOPE) Scholarship, Hollins University took a decisive step toward removing financial barriers for talented students. Spearheaded by President Hinton, this groundbreaking program covers tuition, on-campus food and housing and required fees, ensuring that deserving young women can pursue a Hollins education without the weight of debt.
“We believe in the power of the Hollins academic and residential experience,” Dr. Hinton affirms. “Our goal is to ensure that students can access this transformative opportunity regardless of income.”
A Visionary Voice in Leadership and Learning
Hinton has been elected to the Board of Trustees at The Madeira School, a renowned independent boarding and day school for girls in grades 9-12. Her term began on July 1, 2025. She currently serves as past chair of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities NAICU). She also holds board positions with the American Association of Colleges and Universities, The Teagle Foundation, the Council of Independent Colleges of Virginia, and Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles.
Hinton is a frequent speaker across the U.S. and internationally on issues related to the liberal arts and inclusive excellence. She is a faculty member in the CIC Presidential Vocation and Institutional Mission program and the Academic Leadership Institute (ALI).
She is the author of several books, including Leading from the Margins: College Leadership from Unexpected Places (2024) and the forthcoming Where Love Leads: Leadership, Love, and the Liberal Arts, will be published by University of Virginia Press in 2026.
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Honors That Reflect Impact
President Hinton’s trailblazing work has earned widespread recognition. She has received the Bicentennial Medal from Williams College and honorary doctorates from three institutions.
In 2020, Credo, a comprehensive higher education consulting firm specializing in working with independent colleges and universities, honored her with the Courageous Leadership Award—recognizing her as an innovative leader in independent higher education.
In 2021, she was elected to the prestigious American Academy of Arts & Sciences, an organization established more than 240 years ago by the nation’s founders to honor exceptionally accomplished individuals and engage them in advancing the public good.
More recently, she was named a 2024 Citizen of the Year in the education category by the Roanoke NAACP. In the same year, President Hinton received the Sheila S. Strauss Art Venture Award from the Taubman Museum of Art, which annually recognizes a woman for her extraordinary contributions to the arts and art education.
Advancing the Conversation
Hinton’s scholarship and public voice challenge conventions, amplify underrepresented perspectives, and inspire change in higher education. Her forthcoming book, Where Love Leads (UVA Press, 2026), continues her exploration of how compassion, access, and purpose can transform leadership and community life.
She is also the author of Leading from the Margins: College Leadership from Unexpected Places, which expands on her widely viewed TEDx Talk and offers a compelling case for why individuals from marginalized backgrounds are uniquely positioned to lead and how they can claim that role. Drawing on her own journey to the university presidency, Hinton dismantles traditional leadership myths and underscores the power of diverse voices to shape the future of higher education.
Her earlier work, The Commercial Church: Black Churches and the New Religious Marketplace in America, and her regular contributions to leading higher education publications, further demonstrate her commitment to advancing the national conversation on access, equity, and the value of diverse leadership.
Foundations of an Impactful Leader
Mary Dana Hinton grew up in a low-income family in rural North Carolina. In 10th grade, she was discouraged from pursuing higher education—her guidance counselor suggested the military instead of college, citing her race. But with the support of a family her mother worked for, Hinton enrolled at Saint Mary’s School, an Episcopal girls’ boarding school in Raleigh. That opportunity set her on a new path.
Hinton began her professional life as an elementary school teacher in Maryland before working with the education nonprofit Replications, helping to launch 22 schools in New York and Baltimore. She transitioned into higher education with leadership roles at Catholic institutions, serving as vice president for academic affairs and chief diversity officer at Misericordia University, and later as vice president for academic affairs at Mount Saint Mary College. Her presidency at the College of Saint Benedict marked the beginning of her executive leadership in higher education—before she joined Hollins University in 2020.
Dr. Hinton, her husband, Robert Williams, and their children, Hallela, Hillel, and Hosanna, make their home at Lorimer House, the Hollins University presidential residence.
In 1988, she began studying psychology at Williams College, where she would later be awarded the prestigious Bicentennial Medal. She went on to earn a master’s degree in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas and a Ph.D. in religion and religious education with high honors from Fordham University. She has since received honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees from Misericordia University, the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and Mount St. Mary’s University.
“I am not the leader I am despite my marginality. I am the leader I am because of my marginality.”
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