The National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) membership has elected Leigh A. Leslie, Ph.D., as board president-elect of the NCFR Board of Directors. Dr. Leslie is an associate professor in the Department of Family Science at the University of Maryland.

A member of NCFR since 1975, Dr. Leslie has been an NCFR Annual Conference Program Chair and served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Marriage and Family and Family Relations. She has served on the Innovation Grant Award Review Committee, the Conference Quality and Continuing Education Committee, the Jessie Bernard Award Committee as chair of the Feminism and Family Studies Section, and on the NCFR Board of Directors twice.

“As Board President I would have 2 primary goals: advance our mission to promote the well-being of all families, and assure optimal organizational functioning," wrote Dr. Leslie in her statement of candidacy." "Because of the political nature of 'family' as a social institution, NCFR perpetually wrestles with how research should impact policy. I appreciate the current Board's efforts to give voice to members on this issue. While there is still much to discuss, it is clear that there is support for getting family research to the public and policymakers and promoting social justice for all families. As President I would push this agenda forward. Also, after almost 20 years of operating under the Carver Model of Governance, I believe it is time to assess its effectiveness and whether it allows the type of communication and transparency we desire between the member-owners, Board of Directors, and staff.”

Dr. Leslie and the other newly elected board members will assume their roles at the 2017 NCFR Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, planned for Nov. 15–18.

The National Council on Family Relations is the premier professional association for the multidisciplinary understanding of families. NCFR has a membership of nearly 3,000 family researchers, practitioners and educators. For more information about NCFR, contact NCFR at 888-781-9331 or visit ncfr.org.