Architect, Archaeologist, President: Meet Dr. Cameron Wesson

On Tuesday, November 24, we welcome Dr. Cameron Wesson, who became Shepherd University’s 17th president on July 1, 2026. Just weeks after his formal investiture, he joins us to share his vision for Shepherd and what the university means to Shepherdstown.

Before coming to Shepherd, Dr. Wesson served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at La Salle University in Philadelphia, and before that as provost and dean of the faculty at Franklin & Marshall College. He has devoted more than three decades to higher education, starting with about 20 years as a professor and then moving into roles as department chair, associate dean, dean and provost. Along the way he has taught and led at the University of Oklahoma, the University of Illinois Chicago, the University of Vermont and Lehigh University.

Trained as both an architect and an archaeologist, Dr. Wesson grew up in Talladega County, Alabama, and earned two bachelor’s degrees at Auburn University, one in architecture and environmental design and one in anthropology. He has said he didn’t discover anthropology until he was nearly four years into the architecture program, and a professor convinced him to stay an extra year for the second degree. He went on to earn his master’s and Ph.D. in anthropology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His books, articles and archaeological research have taken him across North America and the United Kingdom.

Dr. Wesson brings a lifelong commitment to learning, discovery and student success. He has named getting to know the community and keeping Shepherd “student serving” as top priorities, and he chose the Shepherd University Foundation’s Last Dollar Fund, which helps students cover tuition-related costs, as the cause for his inauguration celebration. As he put it shortly after his appointment, “The Ram Fam is a real thing, as I’ve discovered.”

Please join us in giving President Wesson a warm Rotary welcome!