As Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, Academic Programs and Policy, Gillian oversees academic policy, academic program review, academic program support, and first-year academic programs as well as the programs that make up the Harvard College Curriculum: Expository Writing, General Education, First-Year Seminars, the Mindich Program and the Lemann Program in Engaged Scholarship, all with the goal of ensuring that these programs contribute to a transformative educational experience for students.
Gillian received her AB in History in Literature from Harvard University in 1988 and a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Michigan in 1995. She was Associate Professor at Ashland University before moving to Boston University in 2005, where she most recently served in the BU Provost’s Office overseeing university-wide academic assessment.