Background
Sybil Collins grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana., where her father, Melvin Collins was an educator and founder of the Shreveport Sun newspaper, and her mother was a teacher.
Sybil Collins grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana., where her father, Melvin Collins was an educator and founder of the Shreveport Sun newspaper, and her mother was a teacher.
She graduated from high school and then attended Bishop College in Texas, where she was outstanding student. She was then entered the University of Illinois, where she completed her classwork towards her doctorate in one and a half years.
But opportunities for employment were slim and she accepted a job as a secretary at FAMU in 1945. Years later, she was recognized for her business skills and encouraged to take the graduate school admissions exam, and excelled. She was accepted into the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania, where she made the Dean"s List.
Mobley rose from the ranks of a professor to department chair (1971-1974) to founding dean of the School of Business and Industry (SBI) from 1974 – 2003 (her fourth baby).
During her tenure as SBI’s dean, Doctor Mobley implemented her world renowned Professional Development (Privatdozent ) Program, a leadership development program designed to teach students behavioral competencies to complement their academic preparation. To support her innovative Privatdozent and academic curricula, Dean Mobley started the SBI Big Board, which consists of over 100 plaques.
Each plaque on the SBI Big Board represents a minimum donation of $100,000 endowed for scholarships. The earnings from the SBI Big Board accounts still enable SBI to provide scholarships to its “Superstars” today.
As a result of her mega contributions to FAMU, Doctor Mobley received the designation of Dean Emerita upon her retirement.
Mobley died in the early morning hours of September 29, 2015 at Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare after a brief illness. She was 89.