JHU vice provost Kimberly Hewitt named vice president, chief diversity officer at Duke

Kimberly Hewitt, who has served as vice provost for institutional equity at Johns Hopkins University for more than two years, will leave the university next month for Duke University, where she has been appointed vice president for institutional equity and chief diversity officer.

Image caption: Kim Hewitt

Hewitt will begin her new role at Duke on Aug. 5. Her last day at Johns Hopkins will be July 12.

"We are excited to welcome Kim Hewitt to Duke," Duke President Vince E. Price said in announcing Hewitt's hiring today. "Kim is a visionary leader who will collaborate across the university and Duke Health to ensure that we are an ever more inclusive and equitable place to study, work, and visit. I look forward to working closely with her to support and strengthen our richly diverse academic community."

As vice president and chief diversity officer at Duke, Hewitt will work with the university's president, administration, campus community, and health system to advance diversity and inclusion initiatives and to ensure equal opportunity for all employees, faculty, and students.

In her current role, Hewitt oversees JHU's Office of Institutional Equity, which leads the university's equal opportunity and affirmative action compliance efforts, investigates discrimination and harassment complaints, and provides a central resource for people with disabilities.

Under her leadership, the university published in October 2018 its first annual report providing a detailed look at OIE's work responding to complaints of sexual misconduct and other forms of discrimination and harassment. Over the past two years, Hewitt and her team have made significant strides in addressing issues related to OIE's capacity, timeliness, and efficiency, and she led an effort to develop a new, more comprehensive university policy against discrimination and harassment.

"I am very proud of the team we have built in the Office of institutional Equity and the work we have done together to improve the OIE process and increase the transparency of our work," Hewitt said. "Provost Kumar has been a great leader and supporter of OIE as we navigated the challenges and opportunities facing the office. I am hopeful about the future of OIE and its ability to be responsive and proactive around harassment and discrimination issues on campus."

Added JHU Provost Sunil Kumar: "Kim's work at OIE has been critical to our ongoing efforts to make Johns Hopkins University an equitable place to learn and work, one that is fully inclusive and free from discrimination and harassment. We thank her for her many important contributions and wish her the best as she begins the next chapter of her career."

Hewitt joined Johns Hopkins in March 2017 from the University of Minnesota, where she served as the director of the Office for Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action since 2007 and deputy chief of staff for the Office of Equity and Diversity since 2014. She previously served as assistant dean of students and multicultural affairs at Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Hewitt practiced law for 14 years, specializing in employment, labor, and school law. She holds a J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School and a bachelor's degree from Stanford University.

Kumar said he would launch a search for Hewitt's replacement in the coming weeks.