earl e. lee, phd (they/them), is a higher education leader and interdisciplinary scholar committed to creating just, inclusive, and imaginative futures in health and STEM. With 13 years of experience across academic affairs, student success, and institutional equity, they bring a holistic, equity-minded approach to leadership that bridges research, strategy, and practice.
As Assistant Dean of Inclusive Excellence at Arizona State University's Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, earl leads initiatives that advance equitable systems, build spaces of authentic belonging, and transform health education through culturally responsive, data-informed strategies. Their work focuses on transforming curriculum, mentoring, and faculty development by integrating inclusive excellence into the college's everyday practices.
earl's research and practice operate at the intersection of science and technology studies (STS), health equity, and decolonial pedagogy. They use community-engaged and imaginative approaches, including storytelling, participatory design, and speculative methods, to advance more equitable systems of care, knowledge, and education.
Across all areas of their work, earl emphasizes how liberation emerges through Black creative texts as a lens for better understanding the relationships between knowledge and power, innovation and inequity, and the future and justice. Whether leading institutional change or conducting critical research, they are committed to building collaborative, liberatory spaces where diverse people and ways of knowing can thrive.