Major Gift Officer
Simmons University

Dr. Lynn Perry Wooten, President

“I am honored to be the ninth president of Simmons University, an institution with a rich tradition of empowering women-centered leaders and social justice champions.” – Dr. Lynn Perry Wooten

Dr. Wooten is the ninth president of Simmons University and the first African American to lead the university. A seasoned academic and an expert on organizational development and transformation, Lynn specializes in crisis leadership, diversity and inclusion, and positive leadership—organizational behavior that reveals and nurtures the highest level of human potential. Lynn is an innovative leader and prolific author and presenter whose research has informed her work in the classroom and as an administrator.

Lynn has also maintained a robust clinical practice, providing leadership development, education, and training for a wide variety of companies and institutions, from the Kellogg Foundation to Harvard University’s Kennedy School to Google.

Lynn grew up in Philadelphia. She is married to David Wooten, a chaired marketing professor at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. They have two children, Justin and Jada.

Professional Experience

Lynn first joined a university faculty in 1994 and has served in administrative roles since 2008. She came to Simmons from Cornell University, where she was the David J. Nolan Dean and Professor of Management and Organizations at the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management.

Lynn started her career as an assistant professor of management at the University of Florida Warrington College of Business. She returned to the University of Michigan in 1998, where she served on the faculty of the Ross School of Business for nearly 20 years. There she taught undergraduate, graduate, and executive education courses and served as Co-Faculty Director of the Center for Positive Organizations as well as Co-Faculty Director of the Executive Leadership Institute. She became engaged in student life as an associate dean, ultimately serving as Senior Associate Dean for Student and Academic Excellence. She left Michigan in 2017 for the deanship at Cornell.

Research & Publications

With leadership at the core of her work, Lynn’s research has ranged from an NIH-funded investigation of how leadership can positively alleviate health disparities to leading in a crisis and managing workforce diversity.

She is the author of two books, Positive Organizing in a Global Society: Understanding and Engaging Differences for Capacity Building and Inclusion (Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2016) and Leading Under Pressure: From Surviving to Thriving Before, During, and After a Crisis (Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2010). Sharing her work at nearly 60 symposia and conferences, she also is the author of nearly 30 journal articles and more than 15 book chapters, as well as managerial monographs and numerous teaching cases.

Beth Kramer, Vice President of Advancement and Chief Development Officer

“I am thrilled to be joining Simmons University, an institution working to advance the important goals of women’s leadership, education and empowerment, and service to society. As Vice President for Advancement, I look forward to engaging with alumnae/i, potential donors, and other key stakeholders who are in a position to support Simmons’ transformative mission.” – Beth Kramer

Beth Kramer serves as Vice President of Advancement. Kramer is a strategic fundraising executive with more than 25 years of development experience at well-known institutions throughout Boston. She has led capital campaigns and secured high-profile gifts to endow fellowships, transform academic spaces, and build research centers. Most recently, Kramer served as the Vice President for Advancement at Olin College of Engineering and played a key role in helping that institution strengthen its annual giving program and design funding opportunities to motivate donor engagement. Prior to that, Kramer was the Associate Dean for Development and Alumni Relations at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, where she secured the School’s second-largest gift in history to create a new research center.

In this role at Simmons, Kramer oversees the Advancement team and continues to build a comprehensive Advancement program that effectively engages alumnae/i and identifies and inspires donors at all levels. Kramer understands the vital role that a strong advancement program plays in helping Simmons engage key audiences and achieve its strategic priorities. Her passion for higher education and data-driven approach will be a major asset, and she will help create new strategic opportunities that will motivate key stakeholders to invest in the future of our University.

Kramer currently resides in Needham and is a graduate of Ohio Northern University.