Faculty members are invited to reflect on ways to balance a meaningful life with work as Elaine Howard Ecklund, a professor of sociology from Rice University, presents “A Career and a Life: Reimagining Academic Culture to Support Flourishing Faculty” from 3 to 5 p.m. Aug. 31 in the Mountainlair, Rhododendron Room.
This Mohindar Seehra Lecture Series is organized by the ADVANCE Center and co-sponsored by the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Department of Sociology and Anthropology.
Drawing on a decade of social science research examining work-family tensions among scientists, Ecklund offers a roadmap for how to better sponsor, support, and empower people of all family statuses to build flourishing, long-term careers in academia.
Find more information and register to attend.
Registrants will be entered in a raffle to win one of Ecklund's two books: “Failing Families, Failing Science: Work-Family Conflict in Academic Science” and “Working for Better, A New Approach to Faith at Work.”
Ecklund will also lead a workshop for graduate students titled “The Mentorship Playbook: How to Find Guides, Lead Others, and Thrive in Grad School” from 8 to 10:30 a.m. Sept. 1 in Mountainlair, Rhododendron Room. Breakfast will be provided. Register to attend.
Later in September, she will lead a virtual workshop for graduate program directors and mentors titled “Five Values and Practices for Mentoring Thriving Graduate Students” from 10:30 a.m. to noon Sept. 18. Register to attend.
Ecklund serves as the Herbert S. Autrey Chair in Social Sciences at Rice University, where she directs the Boniuk Institute for the Study and Advancement of Religious Tolerance. She also helped establish the sociology doctoral program and served as director of graduate studies. Ecklund has led nearly 20 national and international research projects, published over 150 articles, and authored nine books. In 2023, she received the Rice University Presidential Mentoring Award, and in 2026, she received the University Award for Excellence in Professional Service and Leadership.
The Mohindar Singh Seehra Endowment was created in 2016 to provide funds to host guest speakers exploring topics related to the challenges involved in combining and balancing a professional career with a family life.