Shelome Gooden has been appointed to new joint leadership roles

Shelome Gooden has been appointed as the University of Pittsburgh’s associate vice chancellor for research in the humanities, arts, social sciences and related fields, effective Sept. 1, held jointly with her new appointment as associate vice provost for faculty advancement and leadership development.

Gooden is an accomplished scholar and national leader in linguistics as well as humanities, arts and social sciences research. She brings extensive experience in faculty leadership, research development and mentoring to these roles. At Pitt, she has contributed to University-wide initiatives through her roles as a faculty fellow in the Office of the Provost, as chair of the Kenneth P. Dietrich School for Arts and Sciences’ Department of Linguistics, and as the research of impact co-chair for the Plan for Pitt.

As Pitt’s first-ever assistant vice chancellor for research in this area, she has built a body of work that has earned the University national recognition. She is a 2022 Research Leader Fellow of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities Council on Research (APLU COR). In 2023, she cofounded the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Research Leaders Network, spanning more than 40 institutions across the U.S., and she now coleads APLU COR’s working group on Championing Humanities and Social Sciences.

As associate vice chancellor, Gooden will continue to lead this work while expanding Pitt’s institutional capacity to support humanities, arts and social science research: building seed funding and proposal development support for faculty, strengthening the University’s national leadership in this space, and ensuring that these areas of scholarship continue to be recognized as a vital, high-impact part of Pitt’s research enterprise.

This role also reflects something new for Pitt — Gooden will simultaneously take on a joint role as associate vice provost for faculty advancement and leadership development.

She will work with Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement and Leadership Development John Wallace and staff to advance three core areas: faculty advancement, including support for tenure, promotion and research success; leadership development, to include preparation and support for department chairs; and elevating and celebrating, which will expand recognition of faculty achievements through awards, honors and other forms of scholarly distinction.

“This dual appointment lets us connect research development directly to faculty development, ensuring that as we advance research capacity for faculty, we are harnessing the same infrastructure that supports faculty across their careers at Pitt,” Senior Vice Chancellor for Research Rob A. Rutenbar and Senior Vice Chancellor and Provost Joe McCarthy wrote in a Sept. 1 announcement. “This work is essential to building a stronger University, and Shelome’s experience and perspective will be valuable assets as we continue this effort.”