"When you're singing choral music, you can't be thinking about all those other things that are going on in your life. It takes incredible mental focus. People would say to me, 'how do you have time to sing in a choir when you're working on a doctorate?' and I would tell them that for me, it's like getting a mental holiday. It revives me. It refreshes me. It fills a different part of my soul and my brain and actually helps in all the other things that I was able to accomplish." Dr. Elizabeth Chilton was named the inaugural Chancellor of the WSU Pullman campus in the fall of 2021. Chilton joined WSU as provost and executive vice president in July of 2020 and began serving in her dual role in January 2022. A first-generation college student, Chilton earned her PhD at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, after earning her BA at the University at Albany, State University of New York at Albany. From 2017 to 2020 she served as dean of the Harpur College of Arts and Sciences at Binghamton University, one of the largest universities in the SUNY system. Prior to her tenure at Binghamton, Chilton spent nearly 16 years as a professor and leader at the University of Massachusetts. She served as a professor, anthropology department chair and associate vice chancellor for research and engagement, among other roles. She worked toward making the institutions she’s served more accessible, diverse, and inclusive. After earning her PhD, Chilton got her start in academia at Harvard University, where she was a tenure track assistant professor and served as the Associate Curator for the Archeology of Northeastern North America at the institution’s Peabody Museum. In addition to her administrative roles, Chilton is a respected author, teacher, and scholar of New England archeology and Native American studies. Chilton serves as president of the Archaeology Division of the American Anthropological Association, and has served as a faculty fellow for the Higher Education Leadership Programs for Women, or HERS, which aims to create and sustain a diverse network of bold women leaders. She’s been involved in more than a dozen conferences since 1999, serving as an organizer as well as a moderator and panelist, and is the author of dozens of peer-reviewed book chapters and journal articles. To get in touch with Elizabeth, you can find her on Twitter (@EChiltonWSU) or Instagram (@echiltonwsu). You can also email her at [email protected].  Choir Fam wants to hear from you! Check out the Minisode Intro Part 2 episode from May 22, 2023, to hear how to share your story with us. Email [email protected] to contact our hosts. Podcast music from Podcast.co Photo in episode artwork by Trace Hudson