Sian L. Beilock

President, Dartmouth College

Sian Leah Beilock is the 19th president of Dartmouth. She is the first woman to have been elected president of Dartmouth by the Board of Trustees and began her tenure on June 12, 2023.

In her first year, she has positioned Dartmouth as a global leader on some of the most critical issues facing higher-education and the world.

Under her leadership, Dartmouth has used a data-driven approach to lead the Ivies in reinstating standardized testing as part of the holistic admissions process; drastically expanded affordability for middle income families; championed the importance of having dialogue across difference; and recommitted to its moniker as the Big Green with a historic $500M investment in sustainability.

A distinguished cognitive scientist, President Beilock is one of the world’s foremost experts on performance under pressure, receiving the 2017 Troland Award from the National Academy of Sciences. She is also a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, one of the highest honors in her field.

She has worked closely with Fortune 500 companies, professional sports teams, and public sector leaders to build high-performing teams and create environments that attract, retain, and get the best out of their talent.

President Beilock has authored 120 peer-reviewed papers, as well as two critically-acclaimed books — Choke and How the Body Knows Its Mind — that have been published in more than a dozen languages. Her 2017 TED talk on performing under pressure has been viewed more than 2.7 million times.

Beilock's research has been featured in media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, and CNN. She was chosen as one of 25 "Women to Watch" by Crain's Chicago Business and won several awards from national and international societies devoted to psychology, sports psychology, and education.

Previously, President Beilock served as President of Barnard College at Columbia University and Executive Vice Provost at the University of Chicago, where she was also the Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology.

Beilock earned her bachelor of science in cognitive science from the University of California, San Diego, and doctorate degrees in psychology and kinesiology from Michigan State University.

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