Fredericksburg, Va. – Martin A. Wilder Jr. has been named Vice President for Enrollment and Communications at the University of Mary Washington. Dr. Wilder has spent the past 28 years as an administrator at UMW, most recently as Vice President for Enrollment.
Dr. Wilder now will provide senior-level leadership in the areas of public relations, university events, publications and design, news and information, and marketing. This is in addition to his responsibilities for enrollment, which include student recruitment, admission and enrollment at the College of Arts and Sciences in Fredericksburg and the College of Graduate and Professional Studies in Stafford.
The new Vice President for Enrollment and Communications position is an addition to the Core Planning Group at the university, which comprises the president and the vice presidents for Academic Affairs; Administration, Finance, and Legislative Affairs; Graduate and Professional Studies; Student Affairs; Strategy and Policy; and University Advancement. Dr. Wilder will report to Acting President Richard V. Hurley.
Dr. Wilder has served in various enrollment services positions at the University of Mary Washington since 1979. Prior to that, he worked as a guidance counselor and director of guidance in the Stafford County Public Schools. In addition, he has been a member of the Spotsylvania County School Board since 1994, having twice served as School Board Chair. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history, a master’s degree in education and a doctor of education with a focus on educational leadership and policy studies in higher education, all from the University of Virginia.
Active in the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), Dr. Wilder has held a number of posts within the organization. From 2000 to 2003, he was a member of the Executive Board, serving as NACAC’s Vice President for Admission, Counseling, and Enrollment Practices and as chair of the national Admission Practices Committee. At the regional level, he has served Potomac & Chesapeake ACAC as president, assembly delegate and chair of the Admission Practices Committee, of which he currently is a member. In 2005, Dr. Wilder was presented with one of NACAC’s highest awards, the Margaret Addis Award for Outstanding Leadership and Contributions to the Association. Dr. Wilder also has served on the College Board Southern Regional Council from 1995 to 1998, and he is frequently a presenter at regional and national conferences.
Dr. Wilder is married to Vicky Nichols Wilder, a Mary Washington alumna and dance/movement therapist who works with special needs children. They reside in Spotsylvania with their three children.