Margaret J Weber, PhD

As a lifelong advocate for women of faith to share their voices and step confidently into leadership, Dr. Margaret J. Weber brings both passion and experience to her role as Program Director.

Margaret’s dedication to nurturing women’s leadership has been shaped over decades in higher education. Before joining IGE, she served as Dean and Professor at Pepperdine University’s Graduate School of Education and Psychology and held leadership roles at Oklahoma State University. Throughout these positions, she focused on increasing access to education, mentoring graduate students, and developing faculty—all with a commitment to inclusion and dignity.

A global citizen at heart, Margaret guided graduate students through immersive learning experiences that united faith and service in meaningful ways: collaborating with NGOs in Kenya to combat teen addiction, working alongside faith-based organizations in Ethiopia to educate young children in underserved communities, and studying corporate social responsibility in India. These experiences embody her strong belief that faith-inspired leadership can transform lives across different cultures and settings.

Margaret has long championed diversity, especially in gender and racial equality. At Pepperdine, she led initiatives to boost the diversity of students, faculty, and staff. She also founded the Women and Leadership: Work-Life Integration Project, capturing the voices of over 800 women worldwide, and guided 28 doctoral dissertations from this project. A key insight from this research is one she holds close: many women wait too long to share their voices and wish they had felt freer to lead boldly and faithfully much earlier in life.

Her dedication to advocacy goes beyond the classroom. As a former board member of the Union Rescue Mission in Los Angeles, she concentrated on helping women and children facing homelessness and the trauma of abuse.

Margaret’s journey started as a teacher in a rural Illinois community where poverty and limited opportunities shaped her belief that education—and the courage to believe in one’s worth—can transform everything. After earning her doctorate at the University of Missouri, she committed her research to social equity, educational access, and mentorship. She has extensively published on these subjects in journals, books, and edited volumes.

She treasures her family. She and her husband, Dr. Joseph A. Weber, a sociologist who specializes in gerontology, enjoy spending time with their sons, Daniel and Travis, and their growing families. Nothing makes them happier than learning alongside their grandchildren—Lucy, Penny, Ellie, Elora, Elias, and Max.

Today, Margaret remains deeply committed to walking alongside women of faith around the world—encouraging them to lift their voices, embrace their calling, and lead with courage, compassion, and conviction.