Nicholas Lemann, the dean emeritus of the journalism school, has been named the inaugural director of Columbia World Projects, a University-wide initiative created this past April. The initiative aims to facilitate novel collaborations between scholars and non-academic partners to address pressing global issues.
Lemann, who led the journalism school from 2003 to 2013, is the Joseph Pulitzer II and Edith Pulitzer Moore Professor of Journalism. He also directs the University-owned publishing imprint Columbia Global Reports and is a staff writer at the New Yorker.
As the head of Columbia World Projects, Lemann will spearhead an effort to connect academic work “with organizations and entities beyond the academy that possess the power and influence to transform research into concrete consequences benefiting humanity,” said President Lee C. Bollinger in announcing his new appointment.
Bollinger also announced that Avril Haines, former deputy national security adviser to President Barack Obama ’83CC and former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency, has joined the University as senior researcher for Columbia World Projects.
