Leadership Transition in Office of Equal Opportunity and Title IX

It is with mixed feelings that I share that the University of Denver’s associate vice chancellor for equal opportunity & Title IX, Emily Babb, has been selected as the associate vice president for civil rights and Title IX compliance for Northwestern University, which has campuses in Evanston and Chicago in Illinois, as well as Doha, Qatar. Emily’s last day with DU will be April 14, 2023. This is an exciting next step in Emily’s career, and we wish her the very best as she begins this next chapter.  

Emily joined DU in January of 2021. Here, she built on an over 15-year career focused on equal opportunity and civil rights work. As DU’s AVC for EOIX, Emily expanded the Office of Equal Opportunity & Title IX to include the University’s first full-time ADA coordinator and deputy equal opportunity coordinator. She engaged and trained a pool of external investigators and hearing officers. Partnering with the Office of General Counsel and other stakeholders, Emily ushered in a university-wide reporting policy for discrimination, harassment, and gender-based violence. She and her team also developed in-person and virtual trainings for students and employees on DU’s discrimination and harassment policy and procedures, increasing knowledge of the Title IX process, how to make a report and what happens when a report is made. Emily and her team helped the University respond quickly and effectively to complaints, upheld DU’s policies, and helped protect the privacy of students involved in investigations. She embodied DU’s commitment to equity and to fostering a learning environment where all can safely learn, live and contribute. Emily will truly be missed by all of us at DU.

Provost Clark and I are working to determine next steps, including who will provide EOIX leadership in the interim until we find Emily’s successor, as well as identifying who will serve on the search committee for that successor. These details will be shared as they are available.

Thank you again to Emily Babb—and best of luck in your new role.  

Sincerely,

Jeremy Haefner