Dr. Richard Walker, vice chancellor and vice president for student affairs and enrollment services at UH System and UH, was appointed in October 2021 to serve as interim president at UHCL. 

Dr. Walker has over 39 years of experience in higher education, at both public and private institutions. He previously served as the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Enrollment Services for the University of Houston System and Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Services for the University of Houston. He has also served as an instructor for the Higher Education Leadership and Policy Studies program within the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in the College of Education at the University of Houston. 

Dr. Walker received his Ed.D. in Higher Education Leadership from the University of Miami. He earned a Specialist in Education in Education Administration and Supervision from Middle Tennessee State University, a Master of Education in Education Administration and Supervision from Memphis State University and a Bachelor of Science in History from Middle Tennessee State University. He is also a graduate of the Harvard Institutes for Higher Education Management Development Program. 

Dr. Walker is involved in several Student Affairs professional associations and has served as the national president, executive vice president, and conference chairperson for the Association of Fraternity and Sorority Advisors. He is a past treasurer for the AFA Foundation Board of Directors. Currently, he is a member of TACUSPA – Texas Association of College & University Student Personnel Administrators and previously served on the TACUSPA Foundation Committee. He is a member of TCCSAO – Texas Council Chief Student Affairs Officers and currently serves as the Chair-Elect and formerly served as the Secretary/Treasurer. He is also a member of ACPA – College Student Educators International, Association of College Unions International, and NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. He was a member of the 2015 NASPA National Board of Directors serving as the 2015 NASPA National Conference Chair. He served NASPA as the Chair of the James E. Scott Academy Board and was a member of the NASPA Emergency Resources Advisory Group. He rejoined the NASPA Board of Directors as the Member-at-Large serving from March 2019 to March 2021. 

NASPA and the NASPA Foundation named Dr. Walker as a 2016 Pillar of the Profession. The award honors sustained professional distinction in higher education recognizing extraordinary excellence and service, significant lifetime contributions and leadership roles in NASPA. In June 2015 he received the NASPA Region III John Jones Award for Outstanding Performance as a Senior Student Affairs Officer. He is a past recipient of the AFA Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Walker was named the recipient of the 2018 Dr. Kent Gardner Award from the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors (AFA). The honor is presented annually to a senior university administrator who exemplifies a commitment to fraternities and sororities through the development of partnerships, creation of positive change, and mentoring of new and seasoned professionals. 

He has served Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity as the Chair and member of the Extension Advisory Committee, Chair of the New Member Education Committee, Province Archon for Nu-Epsilon, member of the Leadership School Planning Committee, Leadership School Faculty, and member of the search committee for the Eminent Supreme Recorder position.