Responsibilities of the Provost
As the University's chief academic officer, the Provost has broad responsibilities for advancing the education and research missions of Duke University. The office of the Provost is organized to support the Provost's work in the following principal areas:
- Enhancing the quality of Duke's programs of instruction and research through effective work with the deans and other senior officers and through creative and effective planning, good management, and regular program reviews.
- Fostering the improvement and recognition of our faculty through the appointments, promotion and tenure processes and the work of the distinguished professors committee.
- Ensuring that the University's budget process enables stable planning and effective resource allocations in support of the University's academic programs.
- Sustaining the University's academic infrastructure--facilities, libraries and computing--that provide critical support to our academic programs.
- Coordinating and overseeing the work of major academic support functions--admissions, financial aid, registration --so that they contribute effectively to our pursuit of academic excellence; also overseeing the Student Affairs budget and working with the President in coordinating the work of Student Affairs.
The Provost's senior staff consists of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs (John Simon), the Vice Provost for Academic and Administrative Services (Judith Ruderman), the Executive Vice Provost for Finance and Administration (James S. Roberts), the Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies (Susan Roth), the Vice Provost for International Affairs and Development (Gilbert Merkx), the Vice Provost for Research (James Siedow), the Dean for Undergraduate Education (Steve Nowicki). Other direct reports include the deans of Arts and Sciences (George McLendon), Divinity (L. Gregory Jones), Engineering (Rob Clark), the Fuqua School of Business (Blair Sheppard), the Graduate School (JoRae Wright), Law School (David Levi) and the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences (Emily Klein, Interim Dean); and Vice Provost for Library Affairs (Deborah Jakubs); The Vice Provost for The Arts, (Scott Lindroth), the Deputy Chief Information Officer (position vacant); the University Registrar (Bruce Cunningham); and Dean of Undergraduate Admissions (Christoph Guttentag), Directors of Undergraduate Financial Aid (James Belvin), Student Information Systems and Services (Kathy Pfeiffer), the Duke University Museum of Art (Kim Rorschach), Duke University Press (Stephen A. Cohn), the Talent Identification Program (Martha Putallaz), and the Kenan Institute for Ethics (Noah Pickus). The Provost also meets regularly with the Vice President for Student Affairs (Larry Moneta) on student life issues.