Dr. Donald A. Outing, Ph.D., is Lehigh University’s first Vice President for Equity and Community. In this role, he leads institutional efforts to advance its work on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Dr. Outing reports directly to the Lehigh President and is the senior administrator responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive plan to enhance and continue to build on the University’s efforts.
Prior to his appointment at Lehigh, Dr. Outing served as the Chief Diversity Officer at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) at West Point. In that role, he served as the academy’s senior leader in coordinating efforts to create a more diverse and inclusive environment and developed and implemented USMA’s first diversity and inclusion strategic plan. Before serving as West Point’s Chief Diversity Officer, he was an Academy and Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences and the founding director for the Center for Leadership and Diversity in STEM at West Point.
Dr. Outing received a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from the University of the State of New York, and a Master of Science degree in applied mathematics, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in mathematics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He is a certified diversity, equity, and inclusion practitioner and senior leader in higher education having completed the Department of Defense (DoD) Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI), the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education’s inaugural Standards of Professional Practice Institute, and the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s (HGSE) Institute for Educational Management (IEM).
Currently, Dr. Outing serves on the Boards of Directors for CFES Brilliant Pathways, United Way Greater Lehigh Valley, and Valley Youth House. He also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Da Vinci Science Center. He has more than 34 years of distinguished federal service, having served his nation as a Navy noncommissioned officer, an Army officer, and a DoD civil servant.