Faculty Member Since 1994
Kathleen Phillips Lewis, Ph.D., is the division chair for the humanities and an associate professor of history. She has played numerous roles at the College, including director of cultural orientation for the Gordon-Zeto Center for Global Education, faculty council president, faculty representative on the Board of Trustees (2016-2018), and director of the African Diaspora and the World Program (2001-2004). Dr. Phillips Lewis also had two stints as chair of the Department of History (2003 - 2006) and (2010-2016).
Dr. Phillips Lewis received her B.A. with honors in history with a minor in economics from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago. She earned her Ph.D. with 1st Class distinction in history; economics – Victorian England; British Empire and Commonwealth; Caribbean economic history from the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
She came to Spelman in 1994 after serving as a lecturer in history at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine campus, where she also served as secretary of the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT).
Dr. Phillip Lewis's research focuses on the impact of British imperial policy on the Caribbean economy, the use of storytelling and folklore by women of African descent in the Caribbean and the history of the Caribbean American Diaspora.