Appointments of Chief Student Affairs Officer and Associate Chief Student Affairs Officer

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

TO: UMMC Faculty, Staff and Students

FROM: Dr. Scott Rodgers, Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

SUBJECT: Appointments of Chief Student Affairs Officer and Associate Chief Student Affairs Officer

I am pleased to announce the appointments of Dr. Hanna Broome as chief student affairs officer and Dr. Penni Foster as associate chief student affairs officer, effective May 1.

Working together, Dr. Broome and Dr. Foster will lead an effort to revitalize and reimagine the student experience at UMMC, with the Norman C. Nelson Student Union as the hub. They will provide support to the Associated Student Body, serve on key university committees focused on student issues and ensure that supportive services are in place for students across all UMMC schools.

Dr. Broome, currently the associate dean of student affairs and recruitment in the School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences, will continue to work in the SGSHS, but most of her time and effort will go into her new role. 

At UMMC, Dr. Broome earned her Master of Science in biomedical sciences and her PhD in biochemistry and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics. Before joining the UMMC faculty, she was an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Mississippi College for four years.

For the past five years, Dr. Broome has served in a variety of other academic and administrative roles at the Medical Center, including assistant professor of cell and molecular biology; assistant dean of Graduate Education; director, as well as academic advisor, for the Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences Program; and director of the MD-PhD Program.  

Dr. Foster is currently the executive director of the Office for Student Success, as well as director of the Office of Academic Affiliations, for the Office of the Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. Those duties will continue as she takes on her new role as associate chief student affairs officer.

Dr. Foster is also a professor of family medicine in the School of Medicine. A licensed psychologist, she earned her Master of Science and her PhD in counseling psychology at the University of Southern Mississippi. Her predoctoral and postdoctoral training include a residency in clinical psychology at the VA Gulf Coast Veterans Healthcare System and a postdoctoral health psychology fellowship in primary care in the UMMC Department of Family Medicine. Dr. Foster is an appointed member of the Mississippi Board of Psychology. She was awarded the 2022 Distinguished Legislative Achievement Award by the Mississippi Psychological Association.

Her past administrative and academic appointments at the Medical Center include faculty positions in the Department of Anesthesiology and the Department of Family Medicine. She has served as director of education in the Department of Anesthesiology and academic consultant in the Office of Academic Support. She has a significant history of scholarship and service to a multitude of institutional committees and initiatives.

Please join me in welcoming Dr. Broome and Dr. Foster in their new roles.

Thank you.