Sian Leah Beilock

Sian Leah Beilock
Born	10 1, 1976
Birthplace	Berkeley, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Cognitive scientist, university president
Title	19th President of Dartmouth College
Known for	Research on performance under pressure; first woman elected president of Dartmouth College
Education	University of California, San Diego (BS) Michigan State University (MS, PhD)
Awards	Troland Research Award (National Academy of Sciences)
Website	[[president.dartmouth.edu president.dartmouth.edu] Official site]

Sian Leah Beilock (Template:IPAc-en; born January 10, 1976) is an American cognitive scientist and university administrator serving as the 19th president of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. A scholar whose research explores the psychological and neural mechanisms underlying human performance—particularly the phenomenon of "choking under pressure"—Beilock has bridged the worlds of academic research and higher education leadership over a career spanning more than two decades. She is the first woman to have been elected president of Dartmouth by its Board of Trustees. Before assuming the Dartmouth presidency in June 2023, Beilock served as the eighth president of Barnard College in New York City from 2017 to 2023. Prior to her administrative roles, she held the position of Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology and served as executive vice provost at the University of Chicago. Her scholarly work, which has appeared in leading scientific journals and has been the subject of popular books, examines how stress, anxiety, and bodily experiences shape cognitive performance in academic, athletic, and professional settings.

Early Life

Sian Leah Beilock was born on January 10, 1976, in Berkeley, California. Details regarding her parents and upbringing in the public record are limited, though her early life in the San Francisco Bay Area—a region notable for its concentration of research universities and scientific culture—preceded her later academic trajectory in the cognitive sciences. Beilock developed interests in both athletics and the science of human performance, interests that would converge in her eventual research career exploring the intersection of psychology and physical skill execution.

Education

Beilock earned her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, San Diego. She subsequently pursued graduate studies at Michigan State University, where she completed both a Master of Science and a Doctor of Philosophy degree. Her graduate work focused on the fields of psychology and kinesiology, a dual disciplinary grounding that would prove foundational to her research into the cognitive and bodily dimensions of performance under pressure. The combination of psychological theory and movement science gave Beilock a distinctive academic profile, enabling her to investigate questions about how the brain and body interact during high-stakes situations, from standardized testing to competitive sports.

Career

Academic Research

Beilock's scholarly career has centered on understanding how and why people fail to perform at their best under conditions of stress and high expectations—the phenomenon colloquially known as "choking under pressure." Her research has drawn on experimental psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and kinesiology to examine the mechanisms by which anxiety disrupts performance in both cognitive and motor tasks.

A significant strand of her work has investigated math anxiety and its effects on academic performance, particularly among women and girls. Research by Beilock and her collaborators has demonstrated that math anxiety can consume working memory resources that are essential for solving math problems, thereby creating a self-fulfilling prophecy in which anxious individuals perform below their actual ability level. Her work has explored how environmental and social factors—including the anxiety levels of teachers—can be transmitted to students and shape their academic self-concept and achievement. A 2011 overview published by the American Psychological Association highlighted Beilock's contributions to understanding how academic stress operates at the cognitive level and how interventions such as expressive writing before exams can mitigate its effects.

Beilock has also studied performance in athletic contexts, examining how expert athletes can paradoxically perform worse when they pay too much attention to well-learned motor skills. This line of research, grounded in theories of automaticity and procedural memory, has implications for coaching, sports psychology, and the broader understanding of expertise. Her experimental work has been published in journals including the Journal of Experimental Psychology.

In recognition of her research contributions, Beilock received the Troland Research Award from the National Academy of Sciences in 2017. The award recognizes original scientific investigation within the fields of experimental psychology or related areas of neuroscience.

Beyond her peer-reviewed publications, Beilock has engaged in public communication of science. She authored a blog for Psychology Today titled "Choke," in which she discussed the science of performance under pressure for a general audience. Her ideas have also been featured in prominent media outlets. A 2012 article in The New York Times discussed her research findings on strategies for improved test-taking, including techniques for managing anxiety during high-stakes examinations.

Her research has also been referenced in international policy contexts. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has cited her work in discussions of educational policy and the effects of anxiety on student achievement across countries.

University of Chicago

Before entering university administration full-time, Beilock held the Stella M. Rowley Professorship of Psychology at the University of Chicago, one of the university's named chairs. In addition to her faculty role, she served as executive vice provost, a senior administrative position with responsibility for aspects of the university's academic programs and operations. Her tenure at the University of Chicago established her as both a prominent researcher and an experienced academic administrator, a combination that would make her an attractive candidate for college presidencies.

Presidency of Barnard College (2017–2023)

In May 2017, Barnard College—the independent women's liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University—announced that Beilock had been selected as its eighth president. The appointment was covered by The New York Times, which noted that Barnard had chosen a leader whose research focused on women's experiences, particularly in fields where they have been historically underrepresented. Beilock succeeded Debora Spar as president, assuming the office on July 1, 2017.

During her six-year tenure at Barnard, Beilock led the college through a period that included the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Her background in the science of stress and performance informed her approach to supporting students during periods of disruption and uncertainty. As president, she advocated for expanding access to STEM education for women and for integrating research opportunities into the undergraduate experience.

Beilock served as Barnard's president until June 2023, when she was succeeded by Laura Rosenbury.

Presidency of Dartmouth College (2023–present)

On July 21, 2022, Dartmouth College announced that Beilock had been selected as its 19th president, making her the first woman to be elected to the position by the college's Board of Trustees. She succeeded Philip J. Hanlon, who had served as Dartmouth's president since 2013. Beilock formally assumed the presidency on June 12, 2023.

Beilock's appointment at Dartmouth came during a period of significant national debate about the role and value of higher education in the United States. Her subsequent leadership has drawn attention both within and beyond the Ivy League for its emphasis on reaffirming the institution's academic mission and for her willingness to engage publicly with questions about the purpose and structure of college education.

In a November 2025 "State of the College" address to the Dartmouth faculty, Beilock outlined the institution's progress on several major priorities and described her approach as "doubling down on our academic mission." The address highlighted investments in faculty recruitment, research infrastructure, and the undergraduate experience as central elements of her presidential agenda.

In October 2025, Beilock issued a public response to the White House's draft "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education," in which she articulated Dartmouth's perspective on the federal government's proposed framework for engaging with colleges and universities. The response positioned Dartmouth as one of nine universities that had been asked by the White House to provide feedback on the draft compact.

Beilock's leadership at Dartmouth has received commentary in national media. In August 2025, The Washington Post published an opinion column describing Beilock as having shown leadership on campus issues that "other Ivies might find instructive." In February 2026, the commentary site Minding the Campus published a piece describing an action by Beilock as "a remarkable public service," noting that an "Ivy League President Breaks Ranks." Also in February 2026, the Sun-Gazette editorial board characterized Beilock as having "presented a bold" approach to the national conversation about higher education.

In January 2026, Beilock also authored an opinion piece for The Wall Street Journal addressing whether a four-year college degree remains worth the investment, arguing that colleges and universities would need to make substantive changes to maintain public confidence in their value.

Beilock has engaged with the Dartmouth campus community through both formal and informal channels. In February 2026, the student newspaper The Dartmouth published a feature-length interview titled "76 Questions with College President Sian Leah Beilock," conducted at the president's residence.

Personal Life

Beilock was born in Berkeley, California. Publicly available details about her personal life are limited. She has worked across multiple states during her academic career, including Michigan (during her graduate studies at Michigan State University), Illinois (during her years at the University of Chicago), New York (as president of Barnard College), and New Hampshire (as president of Dartmouth College).

Recognition

Beilock's contributions to cognitive science and psychology have been recognized by several organizations and institutions. Her most prominent scientific honor is the Troland Research Award, which she received from the National Academy of Sciences in 2017 for her work in experimental psychology. The award is given to researchers who have made outstanding contributions to experimental psychology or related aspects of neuroscience.

She has been elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The Academy's profile of Beilock notes her status as the first woman elected president of Dartmouth College by its Board of Trustees.

Her research has been featured in major media outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg News. The American Psychological Association has profiled her work on academic stress and performance. Her public engagement with the science of performance anxiety, including through her Psychology Today blog and media appearances, has reached audiences beyond the academic community.

Beilock's appointment as the first woman to lead Dartmouth College, an institution founded in 1769, was itself a milestone noted in national and international media coverage in 2022.

Legacy

As an active university president and researcher, Beilock's full legacy remains to be determined. However, several aspects of her career have already had measurable influence.

In the field of cognitive science, her body of research on choking under pressure, math anxiety, and the embodied nature of cognition has contributed to a more nuanced understanding of how stress and anxiety operate at the level of working memory and motor control. Her work demonstrating that teacher math anxiety can transfer to students has informed educational policy discussions, including those at international bodies such as the OECD. Her research has also contributed practical interventions—such as expressive writing exercises before high-stakes tests—that have been adopted in educational settings.

In higher education leadership, Beilock's career has been notable for combining an active research program in the cognitive sciences with senior administrative responsibilities. Her presidencies at both Barnard College and Dartmouth College have positioned her as a figure in national discussions about the purpose and direction of American higher education, particularly during a period of heightened public scrutiny of colleges and universities. Her willingness to engage in public commentary on these issues—through opinion writing, formal addresses, and engagement with government proposals—has distinguished her approach to the college presidency.

As the first woman elected to the Dartmouth presidency by the Board of Trustees, Beilock's appointment represents a historical marker in the history of the Ivy League.