Assistant professor Tyson Pankey, PhD, MPH, has been named vice chair for equity, diversity, and inclusion for the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, effective August 1, 2024.
Since joining the department in fall 2021, Pankey has served as the associate program director of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) for all training programs within the department. He will continue to fulfill this role.
Pankey—a clinician, researcher, and educator—specializes in culturally responsive behavioral health and education among minority patients, including those with intersecting cultural identities and backgrounds.
During his time at Duke, he has demonstrated a steadfast dedication to advancing EDI not only within our education programs, but across all three of our missions. His contributions also extend beyond the department to the School of Medicine community.
In his role as vice chair for EDI, Pankey will build on the strong EDI foundation set by our previous EDI leader, Ernestine Briggs-King, PhD, an associate professor who recently left Duke to pursue another career opportunity.
Pankey will provide vision and leadership for the department’s strategy for advancing equity, diversity, and inclusive excellence across all domains of our mission centered in education, research, and patient care. He’ll advise and work closely with department chair Moira Rynn, MD, and the School of Medicine’s Office of EDI to promote an equitable and inclusive culture experienced by faculty, staff, and learners in the department.
Pankey earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s degree in public health from the University of Kansas School of Medicine & Public Health. He completed his PhD in counseling psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a medical psychology postdoctoral fellowship at Mayo Clinic.
We’re excited about the experience, commitment, and expertise Pankey brings to this role as we continue to work to foster equity, diversity, and inclusion in all facets of our work.