Claire E. Sterk | |
---|---|
20th President of Emory University | |
In office September 1, 2016 – August 1, 2020 | |
Preceded by | James W. Wagner |
Succeeded by | Gregory L. Fenves |
Personal details | |
Born | Claire Elizabeth Sterk 1957 (age 66–67) Netherlands |
Residence(s) | Atlanta, Georgia |
Education |
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Erasmus University ( PhD) University of Utrecht ( DRS) |
Profession | Academic administrator |
Website | https://web.gs.emory.edu/vulnerability/faculty/bios/sterk-claire.html |
Claire Elizabeth Sterk is a Dutch scientist and Charles Howard Candler Professor of Public Health at Emory University. [1] Sterk held faculty positions in anthropology, sociology, and women's, gender, and sexuality studies at Emory. [2] From 2016 to 2020 she served as president of Emory University. [3]
Sterk has been Charles Howard Candler Professor of Public Health at Emory since 2000. Sterk is a leading figure in both public health and anthropology studying addiction, mental health, and HIV/AIDS. She was the first person to identify the risk of HIV infection due to unprotected sex among crack cocaine users.
Sterk received a PhD in sociology from Erasmus University in Rotterdam and her doctorandus degree in medical anthropology from the University of Utrecht. [4] Her undergraduate degree is from the Free University in Amsterdam. [2]
Sterk is the author of two books—Fast Lives: Women Who Use Crack Cocaine and Tricking and Tripping: Prostitution in the Era of AIDS. [5] She has since written another book. [6] She has also published more than 100 articles and book chapters. [6]
She became President of Emory on September 1, 2016. [2] Prior to that time, she had served as provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. [4] She held the position of president in the Alcohol, Drug, and Tobacco section of the American Sociological Association. [6] Sterk is the principal investigator of Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health, which is funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. [2]
In November 2019, Sterk announced that she would resign as Emory president at the end of the 2019–2020 school year and return to teaching in the Rollins School of Public Health. [7]
Sterk speaks four languages. [2]
She was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2018 [8] and elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2019. [9]