Neal Berte, Ph.D. serves as President Emeritus of Birmingham-Southern College after serving as President for 28 – 1/2 years. Prior to his work with Birmingham-Southern, he was Dean of the New College and Vice President for Educational Development at the University of Alabama. He also served as a Director in the Midwest Office of the College Entrance Examination Board, among other career experiences. Dr. Berte holds designation as a Ford Foundation Scholar, Rockefeller Foundation Fellow, and Omicron Delta Kappa National Scholarship winner. He was named to the Alabama Academy of Honor as one of the youngest inductees ever. Dr. Berte is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from the University of Cincinnati.
Dr. Berte was the Founding Chairman of Leadership Birmingham; served as President of the Birmingham Area Chamber of Commerce; served as General Campaign Chairman for the Birmingham United Way and President of United Way. Dr. Berte chaired the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and was inducted into the Birmingham Business Hall of Fame. Dr. Berte serves on the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Foundation Board, is a non-physician member of the University of Alabama Health Services Foundation Board, a member of the Board and the Executive Committee of The Community Foundation of Birmingham, and the National Advisory Committee for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Executive Nurse Fellows Program.