Vita arrives at Texas Tech-Costa Rica after serving as the provost and vice president for academic affairs at The American University of Nigeria.
Texas Tech University announced today that Paul Vita has been named the new dean of Texas Tech University-Costa Rica. He will begin his new position Sept. 1.
Previously the provost and vice president for academic affairs at The American University of Nigeria, Vita has a long and distinguished career in academia both in the U.S. and abroad. He has held international positions in Nigeria and Spain as well as at Columbia University in New York, Morningside College (now University) in Iowa and the Woodberry Forest School in Virginia.
“The opportunity to lead a focused, high-impact U.S. campus abroad – one aligned with Texas Tech’s mission and responsive to Costa Rica’s regional needs – is thrilling," Vita said. “Three decades in international higher education, including the last three years in Nigeria, have strengthened my conviction that American higher education abroad can be transformative for both U.S. students and students whose local systems limit their opportunities. Texas Tech’s Costa Rica campus holds the potential to become the leading American branch campus in Latin America."
As dean of Texas Tech-Costa Rica, Vita will be charged with helping prepare students to become visionary leaders shaping a better future on a global stage. Texas Tech-Costa Rica provides a lower-cost educational option for students closer to home instead of having to relocate to the U.S. Costa Rican students study and perform research in subjects of local interest such as manufacturing, research and development, and services.
As provost and vice president for academic affairs at The American University of Nigeria, Vita was the chief academic officer of the only U.S.-style liberal arts university in sub-Saharan Africa, serving more than 1,500 students and 120 faculty. While there, he helped establish a new school of medicine and infectious disease laboratory and led the charge to revise the university’s core academic policies, including syllabus standards, online course evaluations, faculty and staff awards, and university catalog and program handbook updates.
He also helped the university gain accreditation for six new graduate programs, including four in engineering, developed data-driven enrollment growth strategies, identified high-demand programs, and secured externally funded scholarships from Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Trust Fund.
“Paul brings extensive international higher education leadership and a proven track record in global campus management,” said Provost & Senior Vice President Ron Hendrick. “He understands both the opportunities and complexities of operating international campuses and is committed to creating exceptional educational experiences for students across cultures.”
Prior to his time with The American University of Nigeria, Vita launched James Hope University in Lekki, Lagos State, Nigeria, an urban-based private university in west Africa, and served as its vice chancellor and president. He led academic planning, program development, curriculum innovation and built an administration of 12 faculty and nine staff.
Before establishing James Hope University, Vita spent 24 years in various positions at St. Louis University’s branch campus in Madrid, Spain. He served in several academic and administrative positions before ascending the ranks to serve as vice president, director and academic dean from 2013 to 2023.
Vita also was an assistant professor of English at Morningside College from 1997 to 1999, and before that was a teaching assistant, preceptor and instructor in various departments at Columbia University from 1991 to 1997 and a secondary English teacher at the Woodberry Forest School in Virginia from 1986 to 1989.
Vita earned his bachelor’s degree in English from Yale University and two master’s degrees and his doctorate from Columbia University.