Antoinette Candia-Bailey
Antoinette "Bonnie" Candia-Bailey was an American academic administrator who served in 2023 as the vice president for student affairs at Lincoln University of Missouri in 2023. After she died by suicide early the next year, a national discussion on the treatment of black women in higher education took place.
Life
Candia-Bailey was born to Veronica Joyce Candia and Robert Bonner in Chicago.She completed a B.S. in sociology at Lincoln University in 1998. She joined Alpha Kappa Alpha in November 1995. She earned an M.A. in rehabilitation counseling-disability studies from Michigan State University in 2001. Candia-Bailey completed a Ph.D. in leadership studies from North Carolina A&T State University in 2016. Her dissertation was titled, My Sister, Myself: The Identification of Sociocultural Factors that Affect the Advancement of African-American Women into Senior-Level Administrative Positions.
Candia-Bailey was the assistant director of university housing at North Carolina State University. She served as the director of academic excellence at North Carolina A&T State University. She was the assistant vice president of student affairs-housing and residence life at Towson University. At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, she was the associate dean of students and student life. Later she served as the senior project coordinator to the deputy vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion. On April 1, 2020, Candia-Bailey became the first vice president of student affairs and chief diversity officer at Elms College.
On May 1, 2023, she returned to her alma mater, Lincoln University, as its vice president for student affairs. On January 3, 2024, Candia-Bailey received a termination letter.
Candia-Bailey had married Anthony R. Bailey on January 28, 2012, in Greensboro, North Carolina. She had two stepdaughters.