Provost & Chief Academic Officer Vicki Chandler is recognized as one of the foremost geneticists in the world, having conducted critical research in the field of plant genetics for more than three decades. In 2014, she was appointed to the National Science Board by President Barack Obama for a six-year term. She was also a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University, received a Ph.D. from the University of California San Francisco, and a B.A. from the University of California Berkeley.

Prior to Minerva, Chandler served as the Chief Program Officer for Science at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, while also teaching at the University of Oregon and the University of Arizona. She is passionate about helping students develop the skills they need to be successful in their future careers, part of which is directing them to be curious, lifelong learners.