A Year-Long Dive Into Equity-Focused Leadership

The inaugural Institute on Inquiry, Equity & Leadership in the Academic Department wrapped up during a three-day event in Chicago last month.

Organized by the Ivy+ Faculty Advancement Network, a faculty and leadership development network established by the Ivy+ provosts, the institute consisted of a three-day kickoff at Yale last fall, remote engagement throughout the year and a capstone at the University of Chicago.

Representing Duke as 2022-2023 Ivy+ Provost Leadership Fellows were five faculty and academic leaders in STEM fields who hold leadership positions in their schools:

• Emily Bernhardt, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Biology; Chair, Department of Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
• Nicolette Cagle, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Science & Policy; Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Nicholas School of the Environment
• Christine Payne, Yoh Family Professor of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science; Director of Graduate Studies, Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science, Pratt School of Engineering
• Gillian Sanders Schmidler, Professor in Population Health Sciences; Deputy Director of Academics, Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy
• Justin Wright, Professor of Biology; Dean of Graduate Education, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

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Duke is a founding member of the Ivy+ Faculty Advancement Network. Joining Duke in this inaugural year of the institute were Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, the University of Chicago and the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to providing opportunities for engagement with topics critical to higher education and interaction with experts in relevant areas, the institute also built community among the fellows from across the Ivy+ schools.

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The next cohort of Duke Ivy+ Provost Leadership Fellows, which will include faculty leaders from the sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities, will be selected from deans’ nominations in the coming weeks.

Main image: Sherilynn Black, Abbas Benmamoun, Gillian Sanders Schmidler, Christine Payne, Justin Wright, Nicolette Cagle, Craig Henriquez and Emily Bernhardt at the University of Chicago (Photo: Courtesy of Gillian Sanders Schmidler)