Lee Cuba is professor of sociology at Wellesley College. In addition to faculty appointments in the sociology department, Professor Cuba has held a variety of administration positions at the college: chair of the sociology department (1992-1995), associate director of the Writing Program (1993-1995), associate dean of the college (1995-1999) and dean of the college (1999-2004.)  During his time in the dean’s office, Cuba led the faculty in a revision of the Wellesley curriculum, shaped and expanded experiential learning opportunities for students, and led strategic reviews of a number of issues of importance to the college: the role of instructional technology, the impact of electronic discourse, the honor code, multicultural education and faculty development through the life cycle.

Professor Cuba’s research is concerned with the acquisition and meaning of place identities, with a particular focus on how migrants come to feel at home in new places.  He has pursued these interests through fieldwork in Anchorage, Alaska and Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and, more recently, has turned his attention to how college students acquire a sense of “at-homeness” on their campuses.  Professor Cuba currently serves as the Principal Director of the New England Consortium on Assessment and Student Learning, a longitudinal study of the Class of 2010 involving seven selective liberal arts colleges funded by the Teagle, Spencer and Andrew W. Mellon Foundations.  This collaboration seeks to better understand the intellectual, social and personal engagement of students as they progress through college.

A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Lee Cuba received a B.S. degree, summa cum laude, from Southern Methodist University in 1976 and a Ph.D. from Yale University in 1981. He served as the William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor from 2004-2008 and was awarded the Pinanski Prize for Excellence in Teaching at the 2008 Wellesley commencement. 

Profile last updated: 9/09