Mohanan Selected by University as Bass Chair

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Sanford faculty member Manoj Mohanan has been named by Duke University as a Bass Chair in recognition of excellence in undergraduate teaching and research.

Mohanan will be the Creed C. Black Professor of Public Policy, effective July 1 for a five-year term. He will become a lifetime member of the Bass Society of Fellows.

On July 1, Mohanan also assumes the title of Senior Associate Dean for Faculty at Sanford. Mohanan has been a faculty member at the Sanford School of Public Policy since 2011.

Bass Chair recipients, including Mohanan, were honored at a University reception for Bass Chairs on May 8.

Mohanan is an applied microeconomist, focusing on health and development economics, with a background in medicine and public health. He has led and collaborated on large-scale research projects studying health policy questions in several countries including India, Kenya and Rwanda. His research has examined topics related to health and health care in developing countries including performance-based contracts, measurement of provider quality and performance, social franchising, and social accountability.  His ongoing research projects, funded by NIH, investigate strategies to improve treatment of childhood diarrhea and explore the long-term consequences of the COVID pandemic on mental health outcomes and on future vulnerability of households.

In addition to his Sanford affiliation, Mohanan also has secondary appointments at Duke Global Health, Department of Economics, and Duke’s Population Research Center.

Mohanan has led Sanford’s Undergraduate Task Force Committee to help shape the future of the Public Policy Studies major. With Professor Deondra Rose, he recently received a Duke grant to create an immersive learning experience for students to engage directly with U.S. policymakers in partnership with Duke in DC.

The Bass program, established through a gift to Duke in 1996 from Anne T. and Richard M. Bass, honors faculty members who have achieved “true excellence in both research and teaching, and are good university citizens.” The Bass Society provides an opportunity for some of Duke's most celebrated educators to pool their experiences and resources and collaborate on innovative, interdisciplinary research and teaching initiatives.  

Faculty member Deondra Rose is the Kevin D. Porter Professor. Previous Kevin D. Gorter professors include Kristin Goss, Judith Kelley and Robert Korstad. Other Sanford faculty who held Bass Chairs and are Bass Fellows include Nicholas Carnes, the Creed C. Black Professor of Public Policy, 2018-2023, and Gunther Peck, the Fred W. Shaffer Associate Professor of History, 2006-2011. Anna Gassman-Pines is the WLF Bass Connections Associate Professor.

Read more in the Duke announcement.