Camellia Okpodu

Dr. Camellia Moses Okpodu is a plant biochemist with more than twenty-five years of experience in higher education. She graduated from North Carolina State University with a B.S. degree in Biochemistry in 1987 and earned her Ph.D. in Plant Physiology and Biochemistry in 1994. Upon completing her doctorate, she was awarded a postdoctoral research fellowship in plant molecular biology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

She is currently a Professor of Biology and former Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Wyoming. Prior to joining the University of Wyoming, she served for three years as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA) in New Orleans. In 2019, Dr. Okpodu was named the State of Louisiana’s Endowed Professor of Science, a position that supported her work on understanding coastal perspectives in the Greater New Orleans area.

Dr. Okpodu is a member of Sigma Xi, Beta Kappa Chi National Scientific Honor Society, the American Society of Plant Biology, and the Ecological Society of America. Her academic and professional awards include a study award at Oxford University, the Gordon Research Conference Travel Award, the Intelligence Community Faculty Scholar Award, and both the Award of Recognition and the Special Recognition of Merit Award from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. In 2013, she was inducted into The HistoryMakers as a ScienceMaker, and in 2015, her biography was archived in the National Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. In 2022, she was recognized by Academic Influence as one of the top ten Black biologists of the past thirty years.

Dr. Okpodu is deeply committed to shaping the academic vision of the institutions she serves and believes strongly in producing graduates who are both just and humane. She continues to prepare students for success in America’s global geo-marketplace through her leadership, scholarship, and dedication to educational excellence. She is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.

Camellia Moses Okpodu (born January 24, 1964, in Portsmouth, Virginia), graduated in 1982 from West Brunswick High School, Shallotte, North Carolina. She received a B.S. in Biochemistry (1987) and a Ph.D. in Plant Physiology and Biochemistry (1994) from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina. In 1984, Camellia became the first Black woman to hold the title for Miss Brunswick County, a preliminary scholarship pageant for Miss America. She is passionate about continuing to shape the vision of the University and sincerely understands the importance of producing graduates that are just and humane. She continues to work to prepare students for America's Global Geo-Marketplaces. Of all her accolades Dr. Okpodu is proud to be the mother of three amazing young women (Samelia, Elizabeth and Koren-Grace) and the grandmother to one outstanding grandson - Daniel.