Dr. Nancy S. Barrett is provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Wayne State University where she is responsible for all academic programs, student affairs, and a variety of academic and student services.

Before coming to Wayne State, Barrett served as Provost at the University of Alabama and at Western Michigan University.  She earlier served as dean of the College of Business Administration at Fairleigh Dickinson University.  She was a member of the economics faculty at American University from 1966 to 1989, serving seven years as department chair.  She was also a principal Research Associate at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C.

In addition to her academic positions, Barrett has held several governmental posts.  She served in the U.S. Department of Labor from 1979 to 1981 as deputy and later acting assistant secretary for policy, evaluation, and research.  She also served as an administrator with the Civil Aeronautics Board.

She was deputy assistant director for fiscal analysis for the Congressional Budget Office from 1975 to 1976, and later served as a member of the senior staff of the Council of Economic Advisers, and as a member of the Carter-Mondale transition team. 

Barrett is the author of three books and numerous articles, book chapters, lectures, and papers.  She received the Outstanding Scholarship and Professional Achievement Award from the College of Arts and Sciences at American University, and was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and the Institute of Economic Studies in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.

Barrett holds a B.A. degree from Goucher College and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University, all in economics.