Ansley Allyn Abraham

Southern Regional Education Board | Atlanta, GA | 2021

Ansley A Abraham Portrait Photo

The PAESMEM award is a testament to the important role mentorship plays in preparing the next generation of academics and researchers. I believe a strong mentoring relationship is built on trust, commitment, earned respect, and provides growth for both the mentee and the mentor. This award recognizes and validates the unique value of mentors who have made efforts to help build a more diverse landscape of experts in STEM fields and emphasizes the importance of creating mentorship opportunities.

The official biography below was current at the time of the award. Awardees may choose to provide their latest biographical information on their profile page.

Dr. Ansley Abraham is the founding director of the State Doctoral Scholars Program at the Southern Regional Education Board. He has spent the last 27 years mentoring doctoral students from groups underrepresented in STEM. The Doctoral Scholars Program provides financial assistance, research funding, career counseling, job postings, and recruiting opportunities for participants and has become a nationally recognized program for producing minority Ph.D.s who seek faculty careers. In his role as Program Director, Ansley serves as a mentor to current and former program participants, providing support and guidance as they navigate their doctoral programs and academic careers. Over the past 27 years, the program has helped nearly 1,850 underrepresented students earn doctoral degrees and is currenting assisting an additional 500 scholars through their Ph.D. programs. Since 1994, Ansley has also served as the lead organizer for the national Institute on Teaching and Mentoring, which is the largest gathering of underrepresented minority Ph.D. scholars in the country. Ansley earned his B.S. in sociology and psychology from Florida State University, where he also earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in sociology.