Rochelle Newton

Dr. Rochelle Newton is a technologist by profession. She retired from Duke University after 14 years at Duke University School of Law (Senior Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, and Operations Manager, and Duke University Health Technology Services (Assistant Divisional Chief Operating Officer). She holds a doctorate in Higher Education with a concentration in Leadership. Dr. Newton has worked in IT since 1977 in both the private and public sectors. As technology has evolved, she has developed an inquisitive perspective of technology at the intersection of education and race. This perspective and her work in higher education led to her dissertation thesis, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs): Does Academic Readiness and Its Factors Influence Completion Rates in MOOCs? Dr. Newton suggests fully online courses highlight the underlying presumption of the one-size-fits-all model in education. Factors such as academic readiness, early-admit, formative and summative assessments, merit versus need-based financial decisions, tuition discounting, lectures, merit versus needs-based aid, and testing. All of these tools work but they do not work for all. This philosophy and work with students of various levels have become a focus of her career. For many non-traditional students, academic success is unique to the learner, and formulizing success requires more than admission and a classroom. An assessment of the whole student is necessary to measure academic rigor and the ability to complete the degree. For traditional students, access to education is equally challenging as many are unprepared for the rigor and the social hierarchy of education at every level. She is also an advocate and mentor for women and people of color. In addition to her work with education, race, and technology, Dr. Newton is a strong proponent for issues such as advocacy, pay inequity, and promotion, food insecurity on college campuses for women and people of color in the STEM field. She is married and has two adult children. She formed and disbanded an organization to examine diversity and inclusion for minorities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Dr. Newton and her company, NASITC, works to assist organizations enhance productivity through employee engagement and inclusion. Dr. Newton recently founded The HumanTech Inititative (THI) to assist marginalized communities find jobs in information technologies (IT). She has served as a keynote speaker and panelist on diversity, technology risk assessment, and women in STEM. Dr. Newton has formed a collaborative group within her organizations that brings STEM people together to think about technology, gender, and race. She also created a small group of women to join in a common purpose. The group is called Women Think. She serves on the board of several entities where STEM, race, and education are central. Dr. Newton co-chaired Duke’s TechExpo in 2014 and has completed numerous trainings on diversity, professional development, and emerging technologies.