Duke University wanted to promote the careers of young
minority and female scholars in areas that they were underrepresented. Statistical scientist Lauren Hannah was
looking for a fellowship in which she could have control over her own research
program.
Both the university and Hannah found what they needed through
the Provost Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, a five-year-old effort that
provides two years of funding for new Ph.D.s.
For Duke, the program strengthens the pipeline of diverse
young scholars; for the fellows, it's a rare career opportunity that allows
them to build up their credentials in a time when faculty positions are scarce.
The 10 past fellows -- generally two a year -- have come
predominantly from fields in Arts & Sciences and from professional schools
where postdoctoral programs aren't common, said Dr. Nancy Allen, Duke's vice
provost for faculty diversity and development.
"We try to go heavy in areas where traditionally
postdoc fellowships aren't an opportunity," Allen said. "The program was started in 2007,
but particularly in the past few years when hiring hasn't been as strong, the
fellowship allows promising young scholars to teach a class, build their
research and become more competitive in the market."
Hannah, a Princeton Ph.D. who is in her second year as a
Duke fellow working with professor of statistical science David Dunson, said
she is furthering her work on statistically focused issues from her dissertation.
The research may have a variety of applications; one area she is pursuing is
developing methodology that could be useful to power companies developing
"smart grids."
"Compared to the areas of the other Duke Provost's
Fellows, there are a large number of positions in statistics," Hannah
said. "However, most of the positions available are tied to grant funding
on a specific project, and one would need to spend most of her time on that project.
"What this fellowship allows me to do is work on my own
research program, which is a mix of statistics, computer science and operations
research."
In the humanities, fellowships that allow new Ph.D.s to
continue research to turn their dissertation into their first published book
are unusual, but that's what Kelvin Black is getting to do.
The fellowship reunites Black with Duke faculty mentor Ian
Baucom, who in 2001 inspired the then-Duke undergraduate to pursue graduate
study in literature. When Black
completes the fellowship, he will join the faculty at Hunter College, where he
teaches British and American literature.
The fellowship program, the idea of a 2007 Duke
undergraduate, builds on other, earlier efforts by Duke to create more
scholarly opportunities for young minority and women scholars, particularly in
areas where they are underrepresented.
While more public attention has focused on faculty hiring, Duke's
success in supporting minority graduate students and postdocs date back to the
first initiatives in 1988.
Since the launch of the program in 2007, the fellows have a
strong record of finding faculty positions, beginning with the first
fellows. Historian Kennetta Perry
is now at East Carolina University and psychologist Gabriela Stein is on the
faculty of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
The program is now accepting nominations for next years'
fellows, Allen said. In past
years, Duke faculty have nominated as many as 85 candidates. Selections will be
announced next March.
"We believe the
fellowships allow Duke to contribute to the diversity of the faculty both here
and at peer institutions," Allen said, "and to attract young scholars
to the university to enrich the intellectual community while they're
here."