Sean M. Decatur

Last updated
Sean M. Decatur
Born (1968-09-04) September 4, 1968 (age 55)
EducationHawken School
Alma mater Swarthmore College (B.A.)
Stanford University (Ph.D.)
Known forpresident of American Museum of Natural History
SpouseRenee Romano
Children2
AwardsFellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Scientific career
FieldsChemistry
InstitutionsKenyon College
Thesis Novel strategies for probing structure-function relationships in myoglobin  (1995)

Sean M. Decatur (born September 4, 1968) is a chemist, college administrator and president, who was appointed president of the American Museum of Natural History in December 2022. [1] Decatur will be the first African-American to serve as the museum's president. Prior to this, he was president of Kenyon College from 2013 to 2022. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Decatur is a native of the Cleveland, Ohio, area. His mother was a public school teacher of mathematics and science. He attended Cleveland public schools and the Hawken School. [3] He earned a bachelor's degree at Swarthmore College in 1990 and a doctorate in biophysical chemistry at Stanford University in 1995. [4]

Career

Decatur taught at Mount Holyoke College from 1995 to 2008. He served as an assistant professor of chemistry, then an associate professor of chemistry, and served as department chair from 2001 to 2004. In 2005, he was appointed the Marilyn Dawson Sarles Professor of Life Sciences. He was also an associate dean of faculty for science from 2005 to 2008. [3]

Decatur was a visiting scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2004 to 2005. From 2008 to 2013, he served as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Oberlin College. In 2013, he was named president of Kenyon College. [5]

During his final years at Kenyon College, Decatur faced challenges related both to labor organizing and transgender rights. [6] From 2020 to 2022, students expressed concern over the college not recognizing a student worker labor union. [7] [8] In 2022, students demanded that the college publicly support a transgender staff member, Rhea Debussy, who was receiving transphobic threats. When a statement was not issued, students delivered a list of demands to Decatur's office. [9] Following this, a transgender student then wrote an open letter to Decatur and the college community. [10]

Personal life

Decatur is married to Renee Romano, professor of history and Comparative American studies at Oberlin College. [5] They have two children, Sabine and Owen.

Selected works

Op-ed pieces on higher education

Scholarly articles–published

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. Pogrebin, Robin (Dec 6, 2022). "Natural History Museum Names College Leader as New Chief". New York Times. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  2. "Decatur to Step Down, Will Lead Natural History Museum". The Kenyon Collegian. 2022-12-08. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
  3. 1 2 "Biography". Kenyon College. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  4. "President Sean M. Decatur". Kenyon College. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  5. 1 2 Farkas, Karen (May 6, 2013). "Sean Decatur, Cleveland native and Oberlin College dean, is new president of Kenyon College". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  6. "Staff Editorial: Thank You, President Decatur". The Kenyon Collegian. 2022-12-08.
  7. "Undergraduates Across the Country Are Unionizing College Workforces". CBS News. 2022-04-15.
  8. "Kenyon Student Workers Are Unionizing. They Say the College Is Fighting Them". Jacobin. 2023-02-14.
  9. "Kenyon College Students Deliver a List of Demands to College President to Address Transphobia and Transmisogyny". The Buckeye Flame. 2022-03-08. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
  10. "In Response to Kenyon's President: What Trans Folks Need on TDOV and All Year Round". The Buckeye Flame. 2022-04-06. Retrieved 2023-01-26.