Announcing the Interim Vice Provost for Diversity & Equity

Students, staff, and faculty:

Thank you for the many thoughtful nominations and suggestions for the leadership of the Office of Diversity & Equity.

After careful consideration, I’ve offered the position of interim vice provost for diversity and equity to Associate Professor Jennifer Ng in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. I believe Dr. Ng brings exceptional scholarly credentials and experience to this role that will continue KU’s progress in building a more welcoming and supportive university.

Prof. Ng joined the KU School of Education in 2004 and was recently promoted to full professor beginning fall 2019. She cofounded KU’s Asian and Asian American Faculty Staff Council in 2014 and served as its first president. In 2015-2016 she was a member of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Board appointed by this office to report on steps to make a more inclusive campus. She was a faculty fellow in the Office of Faculty Development and Mentoring from 2016-2018 and is a current member of the Kansas Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. This past year she was named director of academic inclusion at KU, reporting to the vice provost of diversity and equity while working closely with the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Center for Teaching Excellence. In this role she helps students navigate specific classroom and academic concerns related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. She also provides targeted support and instructional consultation to graduate teaching assistants, lecturers, and faculty members.

She’s been recognized by her peers as well as students. Her awards include the School of Education’s 2018 Faculty Achievement Award for Service, the 2017 Steeples Service to Kansas Award, the 2016 Dr. Bob Frederick Educator Award, and the 2011 Gene Budig Teaching Professorship. She is a member of the Leadership Kansas Class of 2015. In 2010 she was nominated for the W.T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence.

She earned her doctorate in educational policy studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her research interests include how the social contexts of K-12 and post-secondary schooling affect educators’ work, especially with race, class, culture, and other forms of diversity as primary features. The many topics she’s chosen to investigate over her career illustrate her broad preparation and foundational understanding that make her an excellence choice for this transitional role in our Office of Diversity & Equity.

Dr. Ng will begin her new role as interim vice provost after the end of this semester for a term that will continue through June 2020. I’m very confident she will be able to build upon the momentum established by Vice Provost Jennifer Hamer.

Please join me in both congratulating Prof. Ng and thanking her for leadership service to KU.

Carl

Carl Lejuez
Interim Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor