Office of the Dean

Kimberly A. Griffin (she/her) was appointed dean of the College of Education in 2022. She has been a member of the University of Maryland faculty since 2012. Griffin joined the College as an associate professor in the Higher Education, Student Affairs and International Education Policy Program, and later served on the dean’s leadership team as the associate dean for graduate studies and faculty affairs. In this role, she led efforts to revise the College’s tenure and promotion policy, as well as support and guide faculty hiring and graduate student recruitment. Prior to joining UMD, she was a faculty member at Pennsylvania State University, an assistant dean for graduate studies at the Stanford University School of Medicine, and an admissions officer at Stanford University.

A leader committed to excellence, care, community, and equity, Griffin is energized by the opportunity to collaborate with faculty, staff and students to advance the College and its goals. She is driven by education's ability to make an impact in schools and communities and has worked tirelessly throughout her career to maximize the connection between research and practice. 

As a scholar, Griffin identifies herself as a “problem-based researcher” and her work aims to promote access, equity, and justice in higher education. Much of her current research and writing focuses on mentorship, career development, and faculty and graduate student diversity. Her research has been funded by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, National Institutes of Health, and National Science Foundation. She previously served as the Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Diversity in Higher Education from 2018 - 2022. Over her five-year term, her vision-driven leadership translated to notable growth in the journal’s readership, impact, and revenues.

Griffin’s work has been widely recognized for its relevance and effectiveness in addressing persistent problems in higher and science education.  She received the Promising Scholar/Early Career Award by the Association for the Study of Higher Education in 2013, and was named an Emerging Scholar in 2010 and Diamond Honoree in 2020 by ACPA.  In 2022 and 2023, she was named one of the 200 most influential education scholars by Education Week.  

Griffin received her bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, her master’s degree in Education Policy and Leadership from the University of Maryland, and her doctorate degree in Higher Education and Organizational Change from the University of California, Los Angeles.

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