Dr. Kristin Nicole Dukes joins Chatham University as Chief Diversity Officer
Dr. Kristin N. Dukes
Chatham University has announced that Kristin Nicole Dukes, Ph.D., will join Chatham as the Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) and Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion beginning May 23, 2022. In this role, Dr. Dukes will collaborate with stakeholders across the university to provide empathetic leadership and expert strategic direction to further advance an environment that is welcoming, inclusive, diverse, and mutually respectful for all students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The CDO reports directly to the President, serves on the Executive Leadership Team, leads the Office for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and co-chairs the campus Diversity & Inclusion Council.
Prior to joining Chatham, Dr. Dukes served as the Dean for Institutional Diversity at Allegheny College, where she was charged with shaping and implementing policies, strategies, and initiatives in support of Allegheny’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Prior to assuming the senior diversity officer role at Allegheny, Dr. Dukes was an Associate Professor of Psychology at Simmons University.
"We are delighted to have Dr. Kristin Dukes joining the Chatham community to serve as our next Chief Diversity Officer”, said Chatham President, Dr. David Finegold. “I’m confident that her wealth of experience and expertise first as a faculty member studying DEI issues and then a chief diversity officer will bring just the leadership we need to help Chatham continue its legacy of championing educational access and diversity.”
Dr. Dukes has more than fifteen years of experience in institutional diversity in higher education, including recruitment and retention, curriculum design, delivering diversity and inclusion competency workshops, and serving as a consultant to various college offices. Her research expertise is in stereotyping, prejudice, discrimination, and social justice. She has published research in various outlets including the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Journal of Social Issues, and Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy and presented at numerous conferences including the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, Society of Experimental Social Psychology, and the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education. Dr. Dukes is a recipient of the 2021 Outstanding Paper Emerald Literati Award from Emerald Publishing for her paper “Anti-Racist Actions and Accountability: Not More Empty Promises.”
Dr. Dukes earned her master’s and doctoral degrees in social psychology from Tufts University. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Rice University.