On
July 1, 1992, Bonnie Guiton Hill became the third dean of the McIntire School
of Commerce at the University of Virginia. Before joining the McIntire School
of Commerce, Dean Hill was a member of Governor Pete Wilson's cabinet in California.
She served President Bush as Special Adviser for Consumer Affairs and Director
of the United States Office of Consumer Affairs. Dr, Hill headed the Organization
on Economic Cooperation and Development's Committee on Consumer Policy. During
the Reagan administration, Dean Hill served as Assistant Secretary in the Department
of Education and Vice-Chair of the Postal Rate Commission.
Prior to moving to Washington,
D.C., Dean Hi11 was a vice president with Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corporation
in Oakland, California, having also served as Assistant Dean of Student Services
and Lecturer at Mills College in Oakland, California.
"... colleagues describe
her as an inspirational whirlwind."
Years ago, her teachers at
McClymonds High School in Oakland, California may have had reservations about
her chances to succeed, Hill persevered because several teachers including Ms.
Powell, her English teacher, encouraged her to be strong and to stay in school.
Dean Hill received a bachelor's
degree in psychology from Mills College, a master's in educational psychology
from California State University at Hayward, and her doctorate in higher education
from the University of California at Berkeley, Her dissertation analyzed a successful
partnership between private industry and business education.
In 1971, during her first
year at Mills College in California, her husband had a massive heart attack,
and she nursed him back to health while working a full time job and caring for
their infant daughter. Hill remained in school and earned her bachelor's degree
in three years, her masters degree the next year, and 10 years later her doctorate,
Hill's colleagues describe her as an inspirational whirlwind. She realizes that
her success is living proof that "as a result of much support from friends and
family, you can take a little black girl out of the streets of Oakland and find
that she can successfully move in diplomatic circles at all levels, including
the White House."
