With over thirty years of experience in Higher Education and leadership, Dr. Sheila Smith McKoy brings a wealth of experience in leading change and transformation in higher education. She has served in the highest levels of academic leadership including at the provost’s level. She has contributed as a transformational leader at Research I, comprehensive universities and at small universities. She is a recognized thought leader, skilled facilitator, mediator and strategic planning expert. Smith McKoy specializes in restorative justice practices, transformation and culture change and dispute resolution. She holds a PhD in English from Duke University, an MA in English from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and a BA in English, Writing and Editing from North Carolina State University. She is a certified CPCC Coach, an ICF ACC coach and has certifications in mediation in both California and North Carolina.
The insights she has gained from serving as a faculty member and higher education leader have enabled her to build consensus while addressing grievances. She also regularly contributes to peace-making efforts in the communities that she serves. She works with clients to co-create a professional environment that aligns with their values.
Dr. Smith McKoy values the art of storytelling in the process of institutional and social change. Smith McKoy is author, editor or co-editor of ten books. An award-winning writer, she is the recipient of the 2020 Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial Prize in poetry, the 2025 Teaching Literature Award and has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, a Pushcart Award and others. The author of numerous articles, book chapters, individual creative works, she is also the writer-director of four documentary films.
Smith McKoy and Associates provides customized, targeted solutions to enable our clients to transform their work and workplace, expand their reach, and make a difference in the communities and in the fields they serve.