Sumru Erkut is a Senior scholar at the Wellesley Centers for Women. Her research has encompassed variations in the course of child and adult development due to gender, race/ethnicity, social class, immigration, urbanization, and sexuality. Her research on adults has focused on employment and leadership. She was part of a team which found that three or more women on a corporate board of directors constitute a critical mass that improves corporate boards functioning. Her most recent work is an examination of the scarcity of women leaders in theaters and what can be done to remedy the situation, a research study carried out in collaboration with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco.