Connector

Melissa Nobles

Ideas and beliefs connect us to each other. I take pride in being a professor and academic leader who can connect people to new ways of thinking. As an established researcher I connect my historically-grounded research to contemporary issues and solutions. As a leader at a technology-centric institution, I find daily opportunities to connect the humanities and social sciences with technology and science. I share my own personal journey to make connections that are sincere and lasting, and each one enriches me and my work, and the contributions I make in the world.

Today, as Chancellor of MIT, I steadfastly remind students and colleagues that technology should be a service to humanity, particularly during times of rapid technological advances. My decades of research of examining racial politics in comparative perspective have helped me understand how a deep appreciation of our complicated human past can lead to a more responsible and equitable future – for all of us. I remain committed to emboldening the “whole student” by expanding MIT’s definition of success both inside and outside the classroom.