• Skip to Content
  • Skip to Main Navigation
  • Skip to Search

Indiana University Indiana University IU

Open Search
  • About
    • Welcome
    • Leadership
    • Offices
    • Directory
    • Programming and Initiatives
    • Accreditation
    • Join our Team: Faculty/Academic Appointments
    • Contact
  • Undergraduate
    • Majors & Degrees
    • Minors & Certificates
    • Advising
    • How to Apply
    • Costs and Finances
    • Contact & Visit
    • Dean's List
  • Masters
    • Majors & Degrees
    • Accelerated Master's Programs
    • Online program
    • How to Apply
      • Exploratory Non-Degree Seeking
      • International
      • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Advising
    • Costs and Financial Aid
    • Continuing Education
    • Certificates
    • Contact & Visit
  • Doctoral
    • Majors
    • How to Apply
      • International
      • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Advising
    • Costs and Financial Aid
    • Continuing Education
    • Contact & Visit Us
  • Career Services
    • Career Coaching
    • Career Kickstart
    • Student Outcomes
    • Recruit with Us
  • Student Experience
    • Life in the School of Public Health-Bloomington
    • Classroom Experience
    • Honors Program
    • Living Learning Center
    • Education Abroad
    • Research Day
    • Ombuds Office
  • Research & Departments
    • Centers and Institutes
    • Departments
      • Applied Health Science
      • Environmental and Occupational Health
      • Epidemiology and Biostatistics
      • Health & Wellness Design
      • Kinesiology
    • Bìguān 闭关
    • G.I.F.T.S.
  • Alumni & Giving
    • Ways to Give
    • Ways to Get Involved
    • Dean's Alliance
    • Alumni Association Board
    • Distinguished Alumni Awards
      • Submit a Nomination
  • Current Students
    • Advising
    • Career Services
    • Internships
    • Financial Support
      • Scholarships
      • Fellowships
    • Education Aboard
    • Student Organizations
    • Inclusive Excellence & Belonging
    • Graduation
    • Contact
  • News & Events
    • News
      • All News
    • Events
    • Distinguished Colloquium Speaker Series
      • Past Speakers
        • Distinguished Colloquium Speaker Series
        • Distinguished Colloquium Speaker Series
    • For Media Professionals

School of Public Health‐Bloomington

  • Home
  • About
    • Welcome
    • Leadership
    • Offices
    • Directory
    • Programming and Initiatives
    • Accreditation
    • Join our Team: Faculty/Academic Appointments
    • Contact
  • Undergraduate
    • Majors & Degrees
    • Minors & Certificates
    • Advising
    • How to Apply
    • Costs and Finances
    • Contact & Visit
    • Dean's List
  • Masters
    • Majors & Degrees
    • Accelerated Master's Programs
    • Online program
    • How to Apply
    • Advising
    • Costs and Financial Aid
    • Continuing Education
    • Certificates
    • Contact & Visit
  • Doctoral
    • Majors
    • How to Apply
    • Advising
    • Costs and Financial Aid
    • Continuing Education
    • Contact & Visit Us
  • Career Services
    • Career Coaching
    • Career Kickstart
    • Student Outcomes
    • Recruit with Us
  • Student Experience
    • Life in the School of Public Health-Bloomington
    • Classroom Experience
    • Honors Program
    • Living Learning Center
    • Education Abroad
    • Research Day
    • Ombuds Office
  • Research & Departments
    • Centers and Institutes
    • Departments
    • Bìguān 闭关
    • G.I.F.T.S.
  • Alumni & Giving
    • Ways to Give
    • Ways to Get Involved
    • Dean's Alliance
    • Alumni Association Board
    • Distinguished Alumni Awards
  • Search
  • Current Students
  • News & Events
  • Home
  • News & Events
  • News
  • School of Public Health Honors the Diverse Deans

School of Public Health Honors the Diverse Deans with which it has Populated the Academy Nationwide

Monday, September 28, 2020

New Initiative Will Update Traditional 'Dude Wall'

It was a cool, clear day in Bloomington on August 25, 2019 when National Public Radio aired a short piece about "dude walls" at different academic institutions. "It inspired some real introspection," IU School of Public Health Dean David Allison recalls.

Just what are "dude walls"? The dusty portraits adorning the halls of academic institutions like the Yale School of Medicine and New York's Rockefeller University. These often include past distinguished faculty and accomplished researchers, and, overwhelmingly, the featured faces are white and male.

While visiting Rockefeller University, MSNBC Political Commentator Rachel Maddow saw the school's exhibit of noteworthy scientists and had asked, "What's up with the dude wall?" The name stuck—and Allison began thinking about the School of Public Health's own "dude wall".

"Our Dean's Conference Room features pictures of our former deans," he explains. "We admire and respect those leaders, yet we also want to share with pride the diversity of our current school. All but one of our former deans is a man—and that one exception is a white woman. What does that lack of diversity telegraph to our students, to faculty, and to visitors?"

According to the NPR story, some institutions were removing portraits of their past leaders, but that did not seem right. Allison began thinking of all of the deans at other schools and colleges around the country who had received their degrees at IU School of Public Health-Bloomington (or its former incarnation, the School of Health, Physical Education & Recreation.) "I realized that we do not just have deans," Allison notes. "We make deans. And the deans who have emanated from the school are rich in their diversity."

So, now, in addition to honoring its own past deans with exhibited portraits, IU School of Public Health-Bloomington unveiled a new set of portraits on the opposite wall highlighting alumni serving as academic deans at other institutions. "We wanted to install a new wall of honor to showcase portraits of the diverse group of our alumni who have attained deanships elsewhere," Allison says.

Work on the new display was begun by a working group established in August 2019 whose members included Dr. Maresa Murray, Assistant Dean for Diversity, Inclusion, and Organizational Climate and Clinical Associate Professor; Dr. Brandon Howell, Assistant Dean of Operations; Dr. David Skirvin, Assistant Dean of Facilities; and Amy Oakley, Director of Outreach, Alumni Engagement and Events.

"As I considered this project, I also thought about the rock critic David Fricke's famous sentiment," Allison continues. "He said, 'Respect the elders. Embrace the new. Encourage the impractical and improbable, without bias.' We'll want to be sure to do each of those things as we move forward."

  • News
    • All News
  • Events
  • Distinguished Colloquium Speaker Series
  • For Media Professionals

Additional links and resources

  • Information for:
    • Current Students

      • Academic Forms Online
      • Academic Forms Download
      • Advising
      • Career Services
      • Internships
    • Faculty / Staff

      • Grant Administration Office
      • Dean's Office Guidelines
      • Academic Council Guidelines
      • HR Toolkit
      • Faculty / Staff Online Forms
  • Quick Links
    • Faculty Directory
    • News
    • Events
    • Alumni
    • Giving
    • Room Request Form
  • Join our Team
    • Administration & Faculty positions
    • Staff positions
  • Undergraduate Programs
    • Degrees & Majors
    • How to Apply
    • Contact
  • Masters Programs
    • Degrees & Majors
    • How to Apply
    • Contact
  • Doctoral Programs
    • Majors
    • How to Apply
    • Contact
  • Key Websites
    • Online Programs & Certificates
    • THRIVE Living-Learning Center
    • Grant Administration Office
    • Internships
    • Public Health Partnerships
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn

School of Public Health-Bloomington
1025 E. Seventh Street, Suite 111
Bloomington, IN 47405-7109

Phone: 812-855-1561
Fax: 812-855-4983

Indiana University

Accessibility | College Scorecard | Privacy Notice | Copyright © 2025 The Trustees of Indiana University