Women’s History Month feature – Dr. Patrice Gilliam-Johnson

This is the third and final Women’s History Month article, a feature on Dr. Patrice Gilliam-Johnson, written by Pati Nash.

The long and distinguished career of Dr. Patrice Gilliam-Johnson has come full circle.

The product of an HBCU – she attended Morgan State University for her undergraduate degree in psychology – the former Delaware Secretary of Labor came home of sorts in 2018 when she joined Delaware State University as Dean of the School of Graduate, Adult & Extended Studies.

“I wanted at some point to give back to an HBCU because my life was so enriched and strengthened by having been at an HBCU,” she said.  “You really have an opportunity to learn about yourself in an environment where you are nurtured. You are made to look at the harsh realities of who and what you are, but in that process you come out with a strong sense of self. I know it’s helped me get through some things in my life with resilience.”

After graduating from Morgan State, Dr. Gilliam-Johnson worked for several years in jobs revolving around social justice, including for a State of Maryland program that assisted ex-offenders, before returning to school for a master’s and doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Upon receiving her doctorate, she worked for a number of organizations and launched a consulting business, where she taught large institutions to recognize dysfunction in the culture and climate of a place and build human resource systems that addressed those issues.

Some of her clients included the national Department of Labor and the Washington, D.C. court system. She served as a psychometric for the U.S. Department of Labor, evaluating test fairness and other measurements.

Throughout her career, Dr. Gilliam-Johnson has kept a connection to teaching, serving as an adjunct at Springfield College in Wilmington.  It led to a full-time position at Springfield, where she became chair of the graduate program in Human Services.  

“I always kept a connection to teaching,” she said. “I like the connection with students, the idea of helping them prepare for success in the workforce. I liked watching the light turn on when they really got something.”

She moved to Wilmington University in 2004, where she worked for 11 years, teaching, serving as chair of the psychology department and designing a program in organizational dynamics.  

The bulk of Dr. Gilliam-Johnson’s career was spent in higher education, centered on themes of fairness, diversity issues, and social justice. Those values were instilled early as daughter of Louise and James H. Gilliam Sr., iconic civil rights advocate and community leader.

She recalled a stream of visitors to the house, from corporate leaders to elected officials, to folks from all walks, seeking counsel from her father.  “You never knew who was going to come to the house,” she said. “That’s just the way it was.”

Dr. Gilliam-Johnson and her older brother James Jr. were allowed to sit at the kitchen table while the grown-ups argued and discussed the serious matters of the day. When they departed, her parents would ask for her thoughts.

Aside from being shown that her opinions mattered, she was taught to be hard-working and that women could excel.  One of her earliest memories is sitting atop her father’s shoulders, watching her mother receive a master’s degree in social work from Howard University. “It was a strong message,” she recalled. “It was a very serious message about what women can do, at a time when it wasn’t so easy for women, particularly an African American woman, to go to college.”

Her background, and her experience with analyzing structural health, likely led to her appointment in 2016 as Delaware Secretary of Labor by then-Governor Jack Markell.  

A humble woman, Dr. Gilliam-Johnson called the appointment a complete surprise.  “I never dreamed of it, I never thought it was a possibility,” she said. “In some respects, it did make sense, given my training and background, and my interest in diversity.”

At the time of her appointment, the Labor Department and other state agencies were facing allegations of discriminatory practices by employees. It was a challenging, but ultimately rewarding two years, she said.  “We made some good inroads,” she said.  “When I left, employees felt they had a voice.”

Dr. Gilliam-Johnson has adhered to another value honored in the Gilliam household, one of service to the community.

Dr. Gilliam-Johnson serves as chairwoman of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League, which was founded by her father, and as president of the Gilliam Foundation, which was founded by her brother and awards grants to nonprofits devoted to bettering the lives of people of color.

Community service will be a main theme at DSU Wilmington, on Wilmington’s Riverfront, in the former Capital One Building which was donated to the University.  Currently being refitted for Del State, the space will house graduate admissions and professional degree programs. Overall, graduate programs have grown from about 250 to more than 800 students under her leadership.

There will also be room for community partners such as the Teen Warehouse and the Apple Accelerate Program, and the facility will be available for community conferences and public meetings. “It’s important for us, to be in the city again,” she said. “We want to reach the community.”

Dr. Gilliam-Johnson is excited by the prospect of establishing a new hub for Delaware State University as perhaps the final chapter in her career. But it’s not an opportunity she takes for granted.

“If I look back on my life, I am grateful for so much,” she said. “I never had a sense of entitlement because in my family we weren’t allowed to be that way…I don’t feel like I have the right because I have been given so much, a great upbringing, a great education, and many opportunities that were made available to me. It almost feels divine.”