Walter D. Broadnax papers

Walter D. Broadnax was born on October 21, 1944, in Star City, Arkansas, to Walter Broadnax, a railroad worker, and Mary Lee Broadnax. His early education took place at Roosevelt Elementary School in Hoisington, Kansas, followed by his graduation from Hoisington High School in 1962, where he was recognized as an outstanding senior. Broadnax earned his B.A. degree from Washburn University in 1967. As a Ford Foundation Fellow, he went on to receive his M.P.A. degree from the University of Kansas in 1969 and his Ph.D. from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs in 1975.

Between 1974 and 1975, Broadnax served as a faculty member at Syracuse University and a staff consultant to the New York State Department of Correctional Services. In 1976, he assumed the role of co-director of the Urban Management Education Program under the Joint International City Management Association/National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C.

Broadnax continued his academic career as a professor of public administration at the Federal Executive Institute, while also teaching at the University of Virginia, Howard University, and the University of Maryland until 1979. During this time, he also directed Services to Children, Youth, and Adults for the State of Kansas in Topeka.

In 1980, Broadnax joined the Carter administration as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Concurrently, he served as a senior staff member for the Advanced Study Program at the Brookings Institution. By 1981, he had joined the Harvard Kennedy School, where he chaired the Massachusetts Executive Development Program and was the founding director of the Innovations in State and Local Government programs. In 1987, he was appointed president of the New York Civil Service Commission, and from 1990 to 1993, he served as an adjunct professor of Public Policy at the University of Rochester.

Broadnax contributed to the Harvard South Africa Program team and led the transition team for President Bill Clinton in 1992. Subsequently, he served as president of the Center for Governmental Research and, from 1993 to 1996, worked as Deputy Secretary and COO of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Donna Shalala. Broadnax also held academic roles at the University of Maryland and served as the Dean of the School of Public Affairs at American University.

In 2002, Broadnax was appointed as the second president of Clark Atlanta University, succeeding Thomas W. Cole Jr. His tenure marked a significant milestone for the institution, as under his leadership, Clark Atlanta University was designated a Research University with high research activity (RU/H) by the Carnegie Foundation. This achievement distinguished Clark Atlanta University as the second private historically Black college or university to attain this prestigious classification, following Howard University.

Broadnax's extensive public service includes roles on Colin Powell's U.S. Secretary of State management advisory board, Comptroller General David Walker's advisory board, and NASA's Return to Flight Task Force.

Dr. Broadnax married Angel Broadnax. They had one daughter, Andrea Broadnax-Green.