Makola M. Abdullah 
Dr. Makola M. Abdullah is the 14th President of Virginia State University (VSU). He is a member of numerous boards and committees including: Council of 1890s Presidents for Association of Public Land-Grant Universities (APLU); Board of Trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on College, and the Council of Presidents for Virginia Institutions of Higher Education, and Board member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. Prior to his appointment as President of Virginia State University, Dr. Abdullah served as provost and senior vice president at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens, and dean and director of 1890 land grant programs at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University in Tallahassee. Dr. Abdullah is a Chicago native. He earned his undergraduate degree from Howard University in civil engineering and his doctorate and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Northwestern University. He is the youngest African American to receive a Ph.D. in engineering. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. He and his wife, Ahkinyala Cobb-Abdullah, Ph.D., are the proud parents of a son, Mikaili, and a daughter, Sefiyetu, who both are college graduates.