Duke Leadership and Management Academies Celebrate Journeys of 2024 Graduates

Duke Leadership Academy

The 14th class of the Duke Leadership Academy celebrated the completion of its 12-month professional development experience with a graduation ceremony on Dec. 2.

Consisting of a comprehensive self-assessment, individualized coaching sessions, conversations with Duke’s established leaders and group projects aimed at addressing Duke’s needs, the Duke Leadership Academy is designed for Duke’s emerging leaders to develop alongside one another. Participation in the highly selective program is based on nominations from Duke's vice presidents and deans.

During keynote remarks, Duke University Provost and Chief Academic Officer Alec Gallimore said the program is an example of the ambitious and encouraging culture he encounters at Duke.

“I often say, our collaborative spirit is Duke’s superpower, but our culture is our true differentiator,” Gallimore said. “I’m not aware of a university that has a culture that matches ours, let alone one that’s superior to it. Events like this are an opportunity to celebrate that culture, just as we are celebrating each one of you.”

This year’s team projects explored topics such as generational differences in the workplace, pet-related employee benefits, creating pathways to employment for interns, and a staff mentorship program.

“It takes a village to pull off what Duke does every day, serving our students, our patients and the broader community, even lemurs,” said academy member and DUMAC Investment Manager Ana Anderson, who delivered the class speech. “There is not an industry or a corner of the world that Duke does not populate or influence in some way. The academy was a gift that granted us the opportunity to zoom out and recognize that a special part of that village is here. We are the village. We are Duke.”

Duke Management Academy

The sixth class of the Duke Management Academy marked the completion of its year-long leadership development program with a ceremony on Dec. 12 at the Nasher Museum of Art.

Drawing promising middle-managers from across Duke, the Duke Management Academy gives participants a chance to explore their personal values and strengthen their skills in strategic thinking, decision making, developing people, and valuing and managing diversity. Members of the academy take part in self-assessments, discussions with veteran leaders, coursework and group projects. Each participant in the selective program is sponsored by the highest-ranking official within their division, department or school.

“What I ask is that, once all the photos are taken today and you walk away from this ceremony and you head back to your workplace, you carry the same curiosity and courage that it took to say ‘I want to be part of this program and learn something new,’” keynote speaker Paul Grantham, Duke Assistant Vice President for Work Culture & Communication Services, told the group at the ceremony. “Walk forward and lead boldly.”

The group projects for this year’s academy focused on topics such as the challenges facing performing arts departments, support for Duke’s food insecurity resources, a raffle system for employee engagement and wayfinding within Duke University Health System.

For Tawana Reed, the Administrative Manager for Duke’s Doctor of Physical Therapy Program who was also chosen as the class speaker for the ceremony, the Duke Management Academy helped her learn how to lead a team of experienced colleagues. Reed said that courses on emotional intelligence and situational leadership showed her how to delegate effectively and build some structure into her team while also giving individual members the freedom to define, and strive for, their own goals.

“I feel more confident,” Reed said. “I feel like I have tools to equip me to be a better manager for my team. But I still have opportunities where I can grow and I can now focus on those.”

2024 Duke Leadership Academy Class

• Ana Anderson – Investment Manager, DUMAC
• Benjamin Cooke – Academic Dean of Advising, Data Analysis & Assessment, Pratt School of Engineering
• Bernice Alston – Director, Student Success Center, Duke University School of Nursing
• Caitlin Shaw – Senior Director of Volunteer Engagement, Alumni Engagement & Development
• Catee Mullen – Director of Clinical Research Education Training & Operations, Duke Office of Clinical Research
• Chloe Ann Hallberg – Executive Director, Emergency Management Business Continuity, Emergency Management
• David Smith – Senior Manager, Network Engineering, Office of Information Technology
• Diontre Earl – Director of Development, Duke Sciences, Alumni Engagement & Development
• Jabrina Robinson – Assistant Dean, International Studies, Duke Law School
• Jason DeRousie – Assistant Dean of Academic Programs and Student Affairs, Sanford School of Public Policy
• Jim Gortner – Director, Building Renewal & Project Support, Facilities Management Division
• Kimberly Bethea – Assistant Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success, Office of Undergraduate Education
• Kristen Said – Assistant Director, Employee Occupational Health & Wellness, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health
• Lara Whittaker – Director of Research Administration, Campus Grants & Management Team
• Lindsay Singler – Director, Research Communications & Engagement, Duke Clinical Research Institute
• Lowell Tyler – Chief Administrative Officer (Interim), Emergency Medicine
• Meghan Weiseman – Assistant Director of Athletics, Employee Engagement & Experience, Duke Athletics
• Melissa Fike – Director of Advance Practice Providers, Duke Primary Care
• Peter Balbirnie – Director, Endowment Administration, Treasury and Cash Management
• Peter Haman – Assistant Director, Office of Information Technology
• Rachel Meyer – Managing Director, Theology, Medicine & Culture Initiative, Duke Divinity School
• Rachel Orr – Assistant Research Practice Manager, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
• Renee Pridgen – Director of Clinical Operations, Government Trials and Networks, Duke Clinical Research Institute
• Summer Webbink – Associate Director, Compliance Services, Office of Audit Risk and Compliance
• Tanisa Little – Manager, Financial Strategy, Financial Planning and Analysis

2024 Duke Management Academy Class

• Ashley Acken – Service Line Manager, Psychiatry Administration
• Bhargav Adagarla – Senior Informaticist, Duke Clinica Research Institute
• Hari Ananth – Senior IT Manager, Data Analytics & Insights
• Kristina Balderson – Research Practice Manager, Pediatrics
• Rosalia Blanco – Manager, Clinical Trial Operations, Duke Clinical Research Institute
• Crystal Cannon – Assistant Director/Manager, Clinical Trials Operations, Government Trials & Networks, Duke Clinical Research Institute
• Julianne Chambers – Associate Director, Department of Economics
• Shannon Dodd – Nurse Manager of Operations, Duke University Hospital
• Lauren Driggers-Jones – Research Program Leader, Duke Center for Autism and Brain Development
• Ben Gildea – Director, Fundraising Communications, Duke Alumni Engagement & Development
• Monique Harris – Director, Multicultural Advancement, Alumni Development & Advancement
• Tracy Holmes – Lieutenant/Special Events Coordinator, Duke University Police Department
• Bridget Kerwin – Director, Student Engagement & Support, Engineering Graduate & Professional Programs
• Quadiriah McCullough – Operations Director, Venue & Production Management
• Whitney McKoy – Lieutenant, Professional Standards, Duke University Police Department
• Nicole Mitchell – Associate Director, Career Readiness, Duke Career Center
• Thom Quintas – Director of Theater, Theater Studies
• Tracie Randolph – Manager, Facility Design, Arts & Health, Facilities & Engineering
• Domonique Redmond – Associate Director of Strategic Initiatives & Planning, Duke Community Affairs
• Tawana Reed – Administrative Manager, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program
• Dean Storelli – Director, Writing & Communications Services, Masters of International Development Program
• Sonya Sutton – Research Communications & Engagement Project Manager, Duke Clinical Research Institute
• Chelsea Swanson – Program Manager, Duke Primary Care Population Health
• Sarah Tucker – Nursing Program Manager, Duke Primary Care Population Health
• Kelsey Vinson – Legal & Compliance Manager, DUMAC

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