Susan Lozier
Susan Lozier, Professor of Earth & Ocean Sciences, received her Ph.D. in physical oceanography from the College of Ocean and Fisheries Science at the University of Washington in 1989. Her research interests include oceanic responses to climate change, dynamics of large-scale ocean circulation, and physical constraints on ocean ecosystems.
Dr. Lozier excels at navigating the constantly shifting landscape of her students' needs:
Susan maintains all of her relationships with a tremendous amount of concern and respect for the individuals involved. In the office, I am so impressed by her acuity at managing and responding to the shifting requirements of a group of students and researchers that is diverse in terms of their ages, genders, ethnicities, and life experiences.”
One life experience to which Susan's students find her particularly well attuned is parenthood:
“The first time that I realized how special Susan was, I was sitting in my bedroom my senior year in college reading an e-mail that she had sent me. The e-mail was in response to a list of questions that I had sen t… Her e-mail reply said simply, ‘I would love to discuss all of these questions with you in detail over the phone. However, I am taking my son's class on a rafting field trip and will be gone for the next two days. Does Monday at 11 work for you?'… In reading Susan's e-mail response, I felt that I had found a woman that shared in my eventual desire to balance career and family and I realized that Susan would be a perfect role model for me.”
The concept of “mentorings,” (discussed in relation to faculty mentoring in the March 2006 Provost Office report, “Mentorings of Faculty: Principles and Practices at Duke University ”) enables Dr. Lozier's impressive responsiveness. This concept acknowledges that best matching individual needs with mentor strengths often requires a network of mentors rather than a single guide along the doctoral journey. Certainly important for any good mentor to understand; an indispensable truth for someone in Dr. Lozier's position…
“Susan is literally one of a kind. The only physical oceanographer at Duke, she has an extra challenge in promoting and educating her students in the absence of departmental colleagues in the discipline. Still, she fosters her students' development of a wide network of colleagues and a rich knowledge of our field. In addition to frequently attending conferences, I have traveled each summer with Susan to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, a locus for oceanographic research, where Susan holds an adjunct appointment. An overwhelming number of scientists open their doors to me to discuss research simply because I am associated with Susan. Susan believes that a graduate student needs multiple channels for mentorship, and she uses all of her resources and her place of great esteem among her colleagues to provide those channels for us.”