Roland J. Thorpe, Jr.

Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Diversity

Dr. Roland J. Thorpe, Jr. joined the Office of the Provost in 2017 as a Provost’s Fellow. His fellowship project involved collaborating with the Offices of Faculty Affairs and Research to design skills-training modules for undergraduate research and to develop a mentoring program that trains graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty in the art and science of mentoring undergraduate students.

In 2018, Dr. Thorpe was tapped to lead the Provost’s Postdoctoral Diversity Fellowship Program, where he has emerged as a key thought leader addressing the challenges and opportunities associated with diversifying the academic workforce. As the inaugural Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Diversity, he will dedicate more time to advancing key initiatives around faculty diversity.

In this role, Dr. Thorpe works closely with Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Ralph Etienne-Cummings and Vice Provost for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer Katrina Caldwell to advance the Faculty Diversity Initiative (FDI). This includes providing infrastructure support for the Target of Opportunity Program and the Cluster Faculty Initiative, collaborating with diversity and inclusion deans and deans of faculty across campuses to enhance support for faculty development and mentoring, and leading an expanded Provost’s Postdoctoral Diversity Fellowship Program.

Dr. Thorpe is a professor in the Department of Health, Behavior, and Society at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, where he also serves as Deputy Director of the Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions, Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer’s Disease Resource Center for Minority Aging Research, and Co-Director of the Health Equity and Social Justice concentration in the DrPH Program. He holds joint appointments in the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology and the Department of Neurology in the School of Medicine, as well as in the Department of Sociology in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences.

A social epidemiologist and gerontologist, Dr. Thorpe’s research focuses on how race, socioeconomic status, and segregation influence health and well-being among African Americans, particularly African American men. He is the recipient of numerous awards recognizing his commitment and contributions to mentoring students and faculty, including the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Advising, Mentoring, and Teaching Recognition Award; the inaugural 2018 NHLBI OHD PRIDE Roland J. Thorpe, Jr. Mentoring Award; the 2020 JHBSPH Dean’s Award of Distinction in Faculty Mentoring; and the 2020 Minority Issues in Gerontology Outstanding Mentorship Award.

Dr. Thorpe earned a bachelor’s degree in theoretical mathematics from Florida A&M University, a master’s degree in statistics, and a Ph.D. in clinical epidemiology with a graduate minor in gerontology from Purdue University.