The Reverend Dr. LaKerri R. Mack Named the 2025 Ali Chambers Professor of the Year at Claflin University

The Reverend Dr. LaKerri R. Mack, an assistant professor of criminal justice at Claflin University, was named the 2025 Ali Chambers Professor of the Year for her impactful and vibrant contributions to teaching, scholarship, service, civic engagement, and professional development. The Ali Chambers Professor of the Year Award is presented annually to an outstanding professor whose impact is felt inside the classroom and throughout the campus community.

Mack promotes the value of internships, graduate school, earning terminal degrees, and financial literacy in her class lectures. She has also spearheaded the establishment of the Claflin University Chapter of the Pi Sigma Alpha Political Science Honor Society.  Pi Sigma Alpha members are high-achieving undergraduate and graduate scholars currently taking courses in government, political science, international relations, public administration, or a related interdisciplinary area. The chapter will be chartered during the 2025 Fall Semester.

Mack has served as a chaperone, advisor and supported several students with their international experiential learning experiences. She has traveled to Belize, Uganda, Italy, Cuba, and South Africa. Mack joins Claflin President Dr. Dwaun Warmack in advocating that every student should have a passport and participate in the University’s Global Studies Program.

Mack, a native of Pittsview, Ala., earned her bachelor’s degree in African American studies and a minor in women’s studies at Vanderbilt University.  She has a master’s degree in public administration with an emphasis on non-profit management from Auburn University and a master’s in criminal justice from Troy University. She earned her Ph.D. in public administration and policy at Auburn University. She is currently completing her studies to earn a master’s in divinity at Emory University.