Mark Harmon-Vaught joined Rice Aug. 10 as assistant vice president and chief of staff for President Reginald DesRoches. Mark comes to Rice from the University of Pennsylvania where he was chief of staff for the university's acclaimed Graduate School of Education. Mark has held roles across K-12 and higher education, including serving as chief of staff and secretary to the board of trustees at Wagner College in New York. He serves as co-chair of the board of trustees for Bridge Preparatory Charter School, New York’s first public school designed to serve students with dyslexia. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Franklin & Marshall College and a master’s in education leadership from Harvard University. He is married to Dr. Emily Hawk, a U.S. historian and assistant professor at SUNY Cortland.