Gwen Sharp, Ph.D.

I earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and joined NSC in 2007 as an Assistant Professor of Sociology. As the first person in my family to attend college, I was excited to join a college dedicated to providing the support and guidance that help first-generation and underrepresented students thrive.
As a faculty member, I designed the Sociology minor and taught classes on gender, race/ethnicity, pop culture, and sexuality. I served as Department Chair of Social Sciences & Business and as Associate Dean of the School of Liberal Arts & Sciences. In 2015 I received the American Sociological Association’s Distinguished Contributions to Teaching Award for my work writing for and editing the website Sociological Images; I also received the state-wide 2014 Nevada Board of Regents Teaching Excellence Award.
As the Vice Provost for Academic Initiatives, I have more opportunities to design programs that continually improve our ability to serve our students. I am incredibly grateful to be able to work as part of a team to ensure we keep on top of the latest research on student success, as well as hiring and retaining diverse faculty members who reflect the diversity of our student body and our state.
In my current role, I am responsible for:

• Oversight of the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence (CTLE) and the Institutional Review Board (IRB);
• Campus-wide professional development;
• The Summer Scholarship Institute;
• Supervising First-Year Experience Lecturers;
• Oversight of grant submissions;
• Academic policy development;
• Assisting the Provost and Executive Vice Provost.