Mary James

Mary James is the A. A. Knowlton Professor of Physics, Emeritus, at Reed College. From 2014 to 2022 she served as the Dean for Institutional Diversity at Reed. In this role, Mary worked with partners across the college and profession to interrogate and reform systems, structures, policies, and norms that disproportionately benefit members of dominant groups while marginalizing members of historically underrepresented or minoritized groups. Among her projects was a redesign of Reed’s faculty hiring protocols that led to BIPoC scholars and women/genderqueer in STEM constituting a majority of tenure track hires in recent years.

Mary has presented at, conducted workshops for, or consulted with over 35 colleges, universities, and non-profits on topics including:

• Inclusive faculty and staff hiring practices
• Inclusive executive hiring practices
• Inclusive pedagogical practices in STEM disciplines
• Culturally responsive advising
• Inclusive practices for boards of directors
• Recentering the curriculum

Mary’s professional service includes:

• Member of the board of directors of the American Institute of Physics
• Co-chair of the American Institute of Physics’ TEAM_UP task force that completed a two-year study on causes and remedies for the underrepresentation of African American students earning B.A./B.S. degrees in physics and astronomy.
• Member and chair of the Committee on Minorities of the American Physical Society (APS)
• Member of physics department climate visit teams for the APS Committee on the Status of Women and the Committee on Minorities.

Mary received her B.A. in physics from Hampshire College and her Ph.D. in applied physics from Stanford University. Her principal areas of physics research have been in accelerator physics, astrophysics, and inclusive pedagogical practices in STEM disciplines.