Meredith College Mourns Loss of Former President John Weems

Meredith College mourns the loss of John Weems, who served as the College’s sixth president. One of Meredith’s longest-tenured presidents, Weems served as the College’s leader from 1972-99. Weems died at age 93 on November 26, 2025, in Venice, Fla.

During Weems’ presidency, Meredith nearly doubled its enrollment and grew the endowment from less than $1 million to nearly $50 million.

Weems’ time as president included a greater emphasis on the quality of instruction and facilities at the College. The percentage of faculty doctorates rose from 40 percent to 82 percent. He oversaw the increase in size of the physical plant and the construction of 12 new facilities on campus. Meredith began offering graduate programs while he was president, and in 1989, the Board of Trustees named the John E. Weems Graduate School in his honor.

Other accomplishments during his presidency included increasing the amount of financial assistance awarded, the launch of summer study abroad programs, and the creation of the Lillian Parker Wallace Lecture Series. 

Vice President for College Programs Jean Jackson, ’75, remembers meeting Weems when he was named Meredith’s president and the role he played in her professional life.

“Dr. Weems became president of Meredith College early in the spring of 1972 — my freshman year. I was freshman class president and was invited with the other class presidents and the SGA president to meet him when he was introduced to the campus,” Jackson said. “I could not have imagined that day that about 22 years later, he would offer me the position of Vice President for Student Development. I accepted and became a member of his cabinet in the summer of 1994.”

Weems served as president during a time of change for Meredith College, including when the College formally changed its relationship with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina in 1997. Among other changes, this update meant that Meredith College could appoint its own trustees rather than having board members appointed by the Baptist State Convention.

Jackson said as a lifelong Baptist, Dr. Weems was uniquely positioned to lead that move, which supported “the very purpose of Meredith College to educate women to be active citizens, to find and use their voices, and to develop as full human beings – intellectually, socially, physically, and spiritually.” 

Before becoming Meredith’s president, Weems was vice president for finance and administration at Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro. He also served in leadership roles at Kentucky Wesleyan College and Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College).

To make a gift in Weems’ memory, visit meredith.edu/giving. Checks can be mailed to Meredith College, Attn: Institutional Advancement, 3800 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27607.