Kristen Norlin has served as Director of Academic Affairs at the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) since 2005, where she provides leadership and administrative oversight for academic programs and faculty affairs. In this role, Norlin works to support DCRI's mission through the coordination of education initiatives, fellowship programs, and academic partnerships.

Norlin's career in academic medicine spans more than three decades and includes leadership roles at some of the country's most prominent research institutions. Prior to joining the DCRI, she served as Administrative Director of Cardiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Before that, she spent nearly eight years at Stanford University Medical Center, where she progressed from Senior Financial Analyst to Business Manager in the Department of Radiology before being named Assistant Director of Finance and Administration for Stanford University's Department of Radiology. Earlier in her career, Norlin worked as a consultant at KPMG, providing expertise on indirect cost recovery to premier academic medical universities across the United States.

Norlin holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from San Francisco State University.