Newcomb Institute recently named Dr. Clare Daniel as the institute’s new director of research. The role is a seamless transition for Daniel, who has been leading research, teaching, and running student programming at Newcomb Institute since 2017. The appointment also represents an important step in the institute’s efforts to strengthen its research profile.
“I see Newcomb Institute at the forefront of gender equity research on a local, national, and global level, so I’m absolutely thrilled about Clare’s appointment. She has been a powerhouse here at Newcomb for years and her deep knowledge of gender equity issues and community engagement will be crucial to advancing our action-oriented research agenda,” explained Newcomb Institute Executive Director Anita Raj.
In her previous role, Daniel directed all of Newcomb’s programming and experiential learning opportunities related to reproductive justice and sexual health. In 2020, she was awarded the Coalition Builder Award from the National Women’s Studies Association’s Women’s Center Network for her work convening the New Orleans Maternal and Child Health Coalition, which aims to improve racial disparities in birth outcomes in Louisiana. In 2023, she, along with Professors Kate Baldwin and Karissa Haugeberg, was awarded a Mellon Foundation Sawyer Seminar grant to convene scholars and community members for a series of events over two years examining the role of the humanities and arts in reproductive justice advocacy on a global scale.
“I’m very excited to step into this new role. Leading Newcomb Institute’s research strategy and implementation across our three focus areas—gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive health, and feminist civic engagement—is a tremendous opportunity,” Daniel shared. “It’s energizing for me professionally, but what’s really exciting is the positive impact our research can have on policymaking and the realities of people who experience gender-based barriers and discrimination,” she added.
Clare Daniel received her PhD in American studies from the University of New Mexico and has been a part of the Tulane community since 2014. Her research areas include reproductive politics across media, political culture, and advocacy; sexual and reproductive health equity; and feminist pedagogies and epistemologies. Her book, Mediating Morality: The Politics of Teen Pregnancy in the Post-Welfare Era, charts a shift in the construction of “teen pregnancy” as a social problem in the wake of the U.S. welfare reform of 1996. Her work on reproductive politics and health has also appeared in Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, the American Journal of Public Health, Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies, Women’s Health Issues, Feminist Media Studies, Psychology of Women Quarterly, and elsewhere. Her public scholarship has been published in such venues as The Advocate, The Hill, and Ms.
