Sian Beilock

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Sian Beilock

| image = Sian Beilock - Dartmouth College - 10 January 2024 - 21 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Beilock in 2024

| office = 19th President of Dartmouth College

| term_start = June 12, 2023

| term_end =

| predecessor = Philip J. Hanlon

| successor =

| office1 = 8th President of Barnard College

| term_start1 = July 1, 2017

| term_end1 = June 2023

| predecessor1 = Debora Spar

| successor1 = Laura Rosenbury

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1976|1|10}}

| birth_place = Berkeley, California, U.S.

| death_date =

| death_place =

| education = University of California, San Diego (BS)
Michigan State University (MS, PhD)

| module = {{Infobox scientist

|child = yes

|fields = Psychology
Kinesiology

|workplaces = {{plainlist|

}}

|thesis_title = When performance fails: Expertise, attention, and performance under pressure

|thesis_url = https://www.proquest.com/docview/305332294/

|thesis_year = 2003

|doctoral_advisors = Thomas Carr
Deborah Feltz

|awards = Troland Research Award (2017){{cite web |title=2017 NAS Troland Research Award |url=http://www.nasonline.org/programs/awards/2017/Sian-Beilock.html |publisher=National Academy of Sciences |access-date=March 11, 2017}}}}

}}

Sian Leah Beilock ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|i|ə|n|_|ˈ|b|aɪ|l|ɒ|k}} {{Respell|SEE|ən|_|BY|lok}};{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRXzyp58yFk|title=Introducing President Sian Beilock|website=YouTube|date=July 18, 2017 |access-date=August 27, 2020}} born January 10, 1976) is an American cognitive scientist who is the president of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire{{cite web |title=Sian Leah Beilock |url=https://president.dartmouth.edu/about/people/sian-leah-beilock |website=President | Dartmouth College |access-date=June 12, 2023 |date=April 20, 2023}} Before serving at Dartmouth College, she was the president of Barnard College in Manhattan, New York. Earlier she was a long time professor at the University of Chicago and left the university as the Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology and executive vice provost.{{Cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/22/nyregion/barnard-chooses-a-leader-whose-research-focuses-on-women.html?_r=0 | title=Barnard Chooses a Leader Whose Research Focuses on Women | newspaper=The New York Times | date=May 22, 2017 | last=Harris | first=Elizabeth A. }}

Education

Sian graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 1997 with a B.S. in cognitive science and a minor in psychology.{{Cite web |title=Madam President |url=https://today.ucsd.edu/story/madam-president |access-date=2024-08-21 |website=today.ucsd.edu |language=en}} She was awarded a Ph.D. in kinesiology and psychology from Michigan State University in East Lansing in 2003.{{Cite web |title=When performance fails: expertise, attention, and performance under pressure |url=https://d.lib.msu.edu/etd/32035 |access-date=December 12, 2023 |website=d.lib.msu.edu}} Her dissertation was titled, When Performance Fails: Expertise, Attention, and Performance Under Pressure.{{Cite thesis |last=Beilock |first=Sian Leah |title=When Performance Fails: Expertise, Attention, and Performance Under Pressure |date=2003 |degree=Ph.D. |publisher=Michigan State University |doi=10.25335/kswv-gr45 |oclc=52627169}} She dedicated it to her brother. Her doctoral advisors were Thomas H. Carr and Deborah Feltz.

Career

During her Ph.D. research and afterwards, Sian Beilock explored differences between novice and expert athletic performances. Later in her career, her research focused on why people perform poorly in stressful academic situations, such as taking a high-stakes mathematics exam. She found that worries during those situations rob individuals of the working memory or cognitive horsepower they would normally have to focus. Because people who have additional working memory rely more on their brainpower, they can be affected to a greater extent in stressful academic situations. Her work demonstrated that stressful situations during tests might diminish meaningful differences between students that under less stressful situations might exhibit greater differences in performance.{{cite journal |last1=Beilock |first1=Sian L. |last2=Decaro |first2=Marci S. |title=From poor performance to success under stress: working memory, strategy selection, and mathematical problem solving under pressure |journal=Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition |date=November 2007 |volume=33 |issue=6 |pages=983–998 |doi=10.1037/0278-7393.33.6.983 |pmid=17983308 |s2cid=15191846 |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17983308/ |access-date=July 20, 2023 |issn=0278-7393}}

Beilock's research also relates to educational practice and policy.{{cite web|last=Beilock|first=Sian|title=Back to school: Dealing with academic stress: Simple psychological interventions can reduce stress and improve academic performance|url=http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2011/09/academic-stress.aspx|publisher=American Psychological Association|access-date=February 5, 2014|year=2011}} Her work found that students' attitudes and anxieties as well as those of their teachers are critical to student success.{{Cite book|title=Developing Minds in the Digital Age: Towards a Science of Learning for 21st Century Education|publisher=OECD's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation|year=2019|isbn=9789264634312|chapter=Chapter 5. The role of anxiety and motivation in students’ maths and science achievement|chapter-url=https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/22f544c1-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/22f544c1-en}} In her work, she has developed simple psychological interventions to help people perform their best under stress.{{cite news |last=Paul|first=Annie Murphy|title=How to Be a Better Test-Taker|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/education/edlife/how-to-be-a-better-test-taker.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 5, 2014|date=April 13, 2012}}

From 2003 to 2005, Beilock was an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. She was on the faculty at the University of Chicago from 2005 until 2017, where she was the Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology and Executive Vice Provost.^[5] On July 1, 2017, she became the 8th president of Barnard College, a position she held until June 2023.{{Cite web|url=https://barnard.edu/news/sian-beilock-new-president|title=Leading Cognitive Scientist Sian Beilock Named 8th President of Barnard College |website=barnard.edu|access-date=May 22, 2017}}{{cite web|title=President Sian Beilock |url=https://barnard.edu/leadership/president-beilock|website=barnard.edu|access-date=May 21, 2018}}

=Dartmouth College president=

Beilock became the first woman to lead Dartmouth College, beginning her tenure as president on June 12, 2023.{{Cite news |date=July 21, 2022 |title=Dartmouth Names Barnard's Sian Beilock as First Female President |work=Bloomberg.com |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-21/dartmouth-names-barnard-s-sian-beilock-as-first-female-president |access-date=July 21, 2022}}{{Cite news |last1=King |first1=Hope |date=July 21, 2021 |title=Dartmouth elects Sian Beilock as its first woman president |newspaper=Axios |url=https://www.axios.com/2022/07/21/dartmouth-college-sian-beilock-first-woman-president}}{{cite web |title=Sian Leah Beilock |url=https://president.dartmouth.edu/about/people/sian-leah-beilock |website= President | Dartmouth College |access-date=June 12, 2023 |date=April 20, 2023}} She said that her focus is on improving student mental health and fostering free speech and open dialogue on campus.{{cite web |last1=Beilock |first1=Sian |title=State of the College address |url=https://president.dartmouth.edu/news/2023/10/state-college-address |website=Dartmouth College Office of the President |date=October 17, 2023 |publisher=Trustees of Dartmouth College |access-date=7 May 2024}} In October 2023, she launched “Commitment to Care: Dartmouth’s Plan for Student Mental Health and Well-Being,” and later hired the institution’s inaugural chief health and wellness officer to oversee campus health and well-being for students, faculty and staff.{{cite web |title=Dartmouth Launches Plan for Student Mental Health |url=https://home.dartmouth.edu/news/2023/10/dartmouth-launches-plan-student-mental-health |website=dartmouth.edu |access-date=17 August 2024}} Beilock also convened a panel hosted by CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta featuring U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and all of his living predecessors to discuss the nation’s mental health crisis on September 28, 2023.{{cite web |title=Dartmouth Launches Plan for Student Mental Health |url=https://home.dartmouth.edu/news/2023/10/dartmouth-launches-plan-student-mental-health}}{{cite web |last1=Mowreader |first1=Ashley |title=New on the Job: Q&A With Estevan Garcia, Dartmouth College |url=https://www.insidehighered.com/news/student-success/health-wellness/2024/03/22/qa-dartmouth-chief-wellness-officer |website=Inside Higher Ed |access-date=17 August 2024}}

In 2023, Beilock introduced a time away policy geared toward students who need to take a leave of absence during their studies.{{Cite web |title=Dartmouth President Sian Beilock: Moving Dartmouth Forward With A Focus On Wellness, Innovation, and Community {{!}} GreaterUpperValley.com |url=https://www.greateruppervalley.com/2023/11/14/471597/dartmouth-president-sian-beilock-moving-dartmouth-forward-with-a-focus-on-wellness-innovation-and-community |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=www.greateruppervalley.com |language=en}}

In February 2024, Beilock reinstated the SAT/ACT requirement for Dartmouth undergraduate admissions, becoming the first Ivy League president to do so following a trend of test-optional policies adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic.{{cite web |last1=Altchek |first1=Ana |title=SATs are back. Dartmouth is the first Ivy League to reverse course after pledging to remove standardized test requirement |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/dartmouth-brings-back-sat-act-standardized-test-requirement-2024-2 |access-date=17 August 2024 |website=Business Insider}}{{cite web |last1=Leonhardt |first1=David |title=A Top College Reinstates the SAT |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/05/briefing/dartmouth-sat.html |access-date=17 August 2024 |website=New York Times}} In a message to the Dartmouth community, she wrote that “the decision was guided by social science research that suggests we can improve our ability to identify students from a wide range of economic backgrounds who will succeed at Dartmouth.”{{cite web |title=Reactivating the SAT/ACT requirement for Dartmouth undergraduate admissions |url=https://president.dartmouth.edu/news/2024/02/reactivating-satact-requirement-dartmouth-undergraduate-admissions |access-date=17 August 2024 |website=Dartmouth.edu}}

In April 2024, she announced the creation of the Dartmouth Climate Collaboration, pledging $500 million towards the goal of eliminating carbon emissions on campus by 2050. The plan includes the installation of high-capacity heat pumps and a geoexchange system.{{Cite web |last=Ormsbee |first=Molly |date=2024-04-23 |title=Net-zero by 2050: Dartmouth Colleges makes ambitious climate goal |url=https://www.mynbc5.com/article/dartmouth-college-emissions-climate/60575359 |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=WPTZ |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2024-04-25 |title=Heat pumps and underground holes: Dartmouth announces $500 million investment in decarbonization |url=https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2024-04-25/heat-pumps-and-underground-holes-dartmouth-announces-500-million-investment-in-decarbonization |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=New Hampshire Public Radio |language=en}}

In October 2024, Beilock pledged that she would add 1,000 housing units for students, faculty and staff to campus within 10 years. The initiative kicked off with a $30 million donation from two alumni.{{Cite web |title=Dartmouth College launches $500 million undergraduate housing plan |url=https://nerej.com/dartmouth-college-launches-500-million-undergraduate-housing-plan |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=nerej.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last= |last2= |last3= |last4= |last5= |last6= |title=Dartmouth College to pour $500M into student housing |url=https://www.highereddive.com/news/dartmouth-college-500-million-student-housing/727408/ |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=Higher Ed Dive |language=en-US}}

==Palestinian protests==

Several incidents, including the October arrests of two student protestors and free-speech concerns around monitoring of student communications, occurred early in her tenure.{{cite web |title=Hanover police arrest two students during 'Dartmouth New Deal' protest |url=https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2023-10-30/hanover-police-arrest-two-students-during-dartmouth-new-deal-protest |website= New Hampshire Public Radio |access-date=November 9, 2023 |date=October 30, 2023}}{{cite web |title=Adkins: President Sian Beilock Has Set a Dangerous Precedent for Free Speech |url=https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2023/11/adkins-president-sian-beilock-has-set-a-dangerous-precedent-for-free-speech |website= The Dartmouth |access-date=November 9, 2023 |date=November 9, 2023}} After a series of forums by Jewish Studies and Middle Eastern Studies faculty, the college launched Dartmouth Dialogues in January 2024 to model productive conversations on divisive issues; build skills around empathetic listening, emotional management and conversation navigation; and encourage connection among students, faculty and staff members.{{cite web |last1=Mowreader |first1=Ashley |title=Success Program Launch: Encouraging Dialogue on Controversial Topics |url=https://www.insidehighered.com/news/student-success/college-experience/2024/01/17/dartmouth-constructive-dialogue-program-responds |website=Inside Higher Ed |access-date=17 August 2024}}{{cite web |last1=Whitaker |first1=Bill |title=Tensions over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war surge on college campuses |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/college-campus-israel-hamas-war-tensions-60-minutes-transcript/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7d&linkId=252719645 |website=CBS News |access-date=17 August 2024}}

In May 2024, approximately 90 students, faculty and community members who were protesting the Israel-Hamas War were taken into custody by the New Hampshire State Police.{{Cite news |last=Patel |first=Vimal |date=2024-05-03 |title=Police Treatment of a Dartmouth Professor Stirs Anger and Debate |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/03/us/dartmouth-professor-police-protests.html |access-date=2024-05-05 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite web |title=Adkins: Dozens of people arrested at pro-Palestine protest at Dartmouth College |url=https://www.wmur.com/article/dartmouth-college-pro-palestine-camp-new-hampshire/60657838 |website= WMUR 9 News |access-date=May 2, 2024 |date=May 1, 2024}}{{Cite news |last=Patel |first=Vimal |date=2024-05-13 |title=Dartmouth's Leader Called in Police Quickly. The Fallout Was Just as Swift. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/13/us/dartmouth-campus-protests-police-beilock.html |access-date=2024-06-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} Two student journalists from The Dartmouth reporting on the protest were among the arrested, though their charges were dropped within days.{{Cite web |date=2024-05-10 |title=Charges dropped against Dartmouth journalists arrested while covering protests |url=https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2024-05-10/charged-dropped-against-dartmouth-journalists-arrested-while-covering-protests |access-date=2025-01-03 |website=New Hampshire Public Radio |language=en}} Following the arrests, the New York Times described Dartmouth as having "stood out for its almost instantaneous response to a nonviolent protest."

In an email the day following the arrests, Beilock claimed that taking over the University’s shared spaces for ideological reasons is exclusionary and could lead to the intimidation of Jewish students.{{Cite news |date=2024-05-13 |title=Dartmouth’s Leader Called in Police Quickly. The Fallout Was Just as Swift. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/13/us/dartmouth-campus-protests-police-beilock.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241121000359/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/13/us/dartmouth-campus-protests-police-beilock.html |archive-date=2024-11-21 |access-date=2025-01-03 |language=en}} A week later, Beilock stood by her decision "to ask the Hanover Police Department for help taking down the encampment" but noted she was "sorry for the harm this impossible decision has caused."{{Cite web |title=Beilock: College President Apologizes for Community Harm |url=https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2024/05/beilock-college-president-apologizes-for-community-harm |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=Beilock: College President Apologizes for Community Harm - The Dartmouth |language=en-US}} Liz Cahill Lempres, Dartmouth’s board chair, said that the entire board of trustees was unequivocally in support of Beilock's actions.

On May 15, Dartmouth's undergraduate student body voted no confidence in Beilock."Slight Majority of Participating Students vote No Confidence in Beilock," The Dartmouth, accessed May 30, 2024. https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2024/05/majority-of-participating-students-vote-no-confidence-in-beilock On May 20, Beilock was censured by a vote of 183 to 163 by the Dartmouth Faculty of Arts and Sciences over her response to the May 1 campus protest.{{Cite web |title=Dartmouth faculty votes 183 - 163 to censure Beilock |url=https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2024/05/dartmouth-faculty-votes-183-163-to-censure-beilock |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=Dartmouth faculty votes 183 - 163 to censure Beilock - The Dartmouth |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Dartmouth's President Is Censured by Faculty Over Protest Actions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/20/us/dartmouth-president-beilock-censure.html |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=Dartmouth’s President Is Censured by Faculty Over Protest Actions - The New York Times |language=en-US}}

Dartmouth is the only Ivy League college which has not faced a federal civil rights investigation over its handling of allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus.{{cite web |last1=Deutch |first1=Gabby |title=Dartmouth president says campus encampments go against ‘academic mission’ |url=https://jewishinsider.com/2024/06/dartmouth-president-says-campus-encampments-go-against-academic-mission/ |website=Jewish Insider |access-date=17 August 2024}}

Works

Beilock, S. L. (2010). Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal about Getting It Right When You Have To. Simon & Schuster: Free Press.
Beilock, S. L. (2015). How the Body Knows Its Mind: The Surprising Power of the Physical Environment to Influence How You Think and Feel. Simon & Schuster: Atria Books.