Faculty & Staff

E. Melanie DuPuis, PhD, professor and chair of Environmental Studies and Science in the Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, has been appointed to Pace’s Board of Trustees.

DuPuis is an environmental sociologist who studies politics, governance, and social movements around food, environment, and sustainability. During her time at Pace, DuPuis built a new interdisciplinary bi-campus department with new and existing faculty and staff, working with faculty to design a new curriculum. Student enrollment has tripled in a four-year period.      

“Melanie’s visionary leadership of Pace’s Department of Environmental Studies and Science has led it quickly to prominence and respect,” said Mark Besca, chairman of Pace’s Board of Trustees. “Her experience as a thinker, an educator, a leader, and an academic entrepreneur will bring a strong new perspective to our board.”​

“We are in the middle of an exciting transition,” said DuPuis. “Pace deserves recognition as an educational institution that gives people a well-rounded education as well as access to a great career. I look forward to representing to the Board the perspective of the faculty on both campuses.” 

Prior to coming to Pace, DuPuis held academic and administration positions at the University of California, Washington Center in Washington, DC, and the University of California in Santa Cruz, CA. DuPuis worked for 10 years with Power Economics as a member of a consulting firm management team that provided economics witnesses in energy and environmental administrative and judicial procedures, including testimony against Enron. She was also the Energy and Environment Policy Analyst for the New York State Department of Economic Development during the 1990s.

DuPuis graduated with honors from Harvard University with a BA in Anthropology. She earned her MA and PhD from Cornell University in Development Sociology with a minor in City and Regional Planning.

For a complete list of Pace University’s Board of Trustees, visit the BOT website.