Bonnie Thornton Dill

Bonnie Thornton Dill is dean of the College of Arts and Humanities and professor of Women’s Studies. A pioneering scholar studying the intersections of race, class and gender in the U.S. with an emphasis on African American women, work and families, Thornton Dill’s scholarship has been reprinted in numerous collections and edited volumes. Her recent publications include an edited collection of essays on intersectionality with Ruth Zambrana entitled Emerging Intersections: Race, Class, and Gender in Theory, Policy, and Practice (Rutgers University Press, 2009), and numerous articles. Prior to assuming the position of dean, Thornton Dill chaired the Women’s Studies Department for eight years. In addition, she has worked with colleagues to found two research centers that have been national leaders in developing and disseminating the body of scholarship that has come to be known by the term “intersectionality.” Today she holds the title of Founding Director for both the Center for Research on Women at the University of Memphis and the Consortium on Race, Gender and Ethnicity at the University of Maryland. She serves as chair of the Advisory Board of Scholars for Ms. magazine, is the past president of the National Women’s Studies Association (2010-2012) and a past vice president of the American Sociological Association (2007). Professor Thornton Dill has received recognition as an outstanding scholar, teacher and mentor through the Jessie Bernard Award and the Distinguished Contributions to Teaching Award, given by the American Sociological Association; the University System of Maryland Board of Regents award for mentoring; and as the Stanley Kelley, Jr. Visiting Professor for Distinguished Teaching in the Department of Sociology at Princeton University in 2009-2010. Her most recent research drew on her knowledge and experience as a teacher, mentor and institution builder around issues of race/ethnicity, class and gender in higher education to examine the experiences of historically underrepresented minority faculty in research universities. Thornton Dill earned her doctoral and master’s degrees in sociology and human relations respectively from New York University, and her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Rochester.