Wofford College names Dr. Tim Schmitz provost

SPARTANBURG, S.C. (courtesy wofford.edu) — Dr. Tim Schmitz has been named provost of Wofford College.

Schmitz has spent 22 years on Wofford’s campus while holding various leadership roles over the years.

“Tim has served our community exceedingly well as interim provost over the past 14 months by demonstrating integrity, consistency and compassionate leadership,” says Dr. Nayef Samhat, Wofford’s president. “He possesses a deep understanding of the Wofford classroom and the broader curriculum and has developed productive relationships across the college community.”

Schmitz arrived at Wofford in 2000 as an assistant professor of history. He chaired the Department of History from 2010-14 before accepting leadership positions as associate provost for administration in 2014 and interim provost in 2021. He was named a full professor in 2015.

“I look forward to continuing to work alongside my colleagues across campus to maintain Wofford’s place as one of our nation’s top liberal arts institutions and to continue to improve the academic program,” Schmitz says. “The higher education environment is a challenging one, and we must continue to meet the changing needs of our students while creating new opportunities for the faculty.”

Schmitz has served the college in myriad ways, including as director of summer programs, chair of the Modest Growth Group, member of the college’s COVID-19 response team, member of the Academic Planning Team, member of the Strategic Vision Implementation Team, and administrator for the $4.25 million, five-year grant from the Romill Foundation. He also represents Wofford on the board of directors for the Northside Development Group and on Spartanburg’s Postsecondary Education Attainment Task Force.

His research and publications focus on early modern Spanish history, and he is the recipient of several fellowships, grants and awards, including a William J. Fulbright Grant and Wofford’s Covington Award.

Schmitz is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and he earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from Indiana University Bloomington.

Wofford’s previous provost, Dr. Mike Sosulski, left the college in 2021 to become the president of Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland.