Born in Trieste, Italy, Lovett came to the United States in 1962 and earned her master's and doctoral degrees in history at the University of Texas, Austin. Dr. Lovett taught at Baruch College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, where she made her mark as a teacher and scholar in the field of Modern European History. During her years in the Washington, D.C. area, Dr. Lovett held national leadership roles as chief of the European Division of the Library of Congress, dean of arts and sciences at The George Washington University, and provost at George Mason University. She lectured at the Foreign Service Institute of the Department of State, wrote for The Chronicle of Higher Education and Change magazine, and participated in national projects for higher education reform. In 1989, she was on Washingtonian magazine's list of most influential women in Washington; in 1992, the Virginia Federation of Business and Professional Women named her Educator of the Year. In October 1993, Dr. Lovett was named president of Northern Arizona University. In 2005 Dr. Lovett was recognized by the American College Personnel Association for lifelong contributions to higher education. Most recently, Dr. Lovett served as president of the American Association for Higher Education from 2003 to 2005.