JACKSON, Tenn. — May 5, 2014 — Gene Fant, Union鈥檚 executive vice president for academic administration, has been named provost of Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida.
He will begin there June 2.
鈥淕ene Fant has become one of the finest ambassadors of Christian higher education to be found anywhere in the country,鈥� Union President David S. Dockery said. 鈥淗is commitment to authentic Christ-centered higher education, his dedication to the liberal arts, his faithful churchmanship and his loyalty to the core values of 51社区 have made him a very special leader on the Union campus for more than a decade.鈥�
Fant came to Union in 2002 as chair of the English department and became Union鈥檚 dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 2006. In 2011 he became vice president for academic administration before being named executive vice president and dean of the faculty in 2012. He co-led the development of the Union 2015 Strategic Plan.
Fant is the author of 鈥淭he Liberal Arts: A Students鈥� Guide鈥� and 鈥淕od as Author: A Biblical Approach to Narrative.鈥� He co-wrote 鈥淓xpectant Moments: Devotions for Expectant Parents鈥� with his wife Lisa. He has contributed dozens of articles and chapters to magazines and books and is a regular blogger for The Chronicle of Higher Education and First Things.
A graduate of James Madison University, Fant earned his Master of Arts in English from Old Dominion University, a Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and a Master of Education and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Southern Mississippi.
Prior to coming to Union, Fant was an English professor and department chair at Mississippi College.
The Fants are parents to Ethan and Emily and are members of Englewood Baptist Church in Jackson.
鈥淚 am grateful for the many opportunities President Dockery has afforded me for the past 12 years, even as I look forward to serving President William Fleming and the Palm Beach Atlantic University community,鈥� Fant said. 鈥淚 leave behind wonderful friends and colleagues, but I am excited about joining a vibrant sister institution that is on the doorstep of one of the world鈥檚 great cities, Miami.鈥�