Appointment of Director of Institute for Women's Leadership

November 3, 2010

Members of the Rutgers Community:

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Alison R. Bernstein, currently the William H. and Camille Cosby Endowed Chair and professor of humanities and women’s studies at Spelman College, and for over a decade a vice president at the Ford Foundation, as director of the Institute for Women’s Leadership (IWL), effective July 1, 2011. She will also serve as Professor of History in the School of Arts and Sciences.

The Institute for Women's Leadership is a consortium of eight of Rutgers’ most important units of education, policy development, research, and outreach focusing on national and international issues regarding women. As IWL director, Dr. Bernstein will work with the member units and with others in the university community to expand the institute’s programs and influence even more broadly throughout Rutgers, as well as nationally and internationally.

Dr. Bernstein, who earned her bachelor’s degree at Vassar College and her master’s and doctorate in history at Columbia University, brings impressive expertise to this position. As vice president for the Education, Creativity, and Free Expression Program at the Ford Foundation from 1996 through 2010, she led the foundation’s exemplary work in the fields of education and scholarship, arts and culture, media, religion, and sexuality. Dr. Bernstein has also served as associate dean of the faculty at Princeton University, where she coordinated the President’s Standing Committee on the Status of Women. Previously, she was program and planning officer at the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education within the U.S. Department of Education. Currently, Dr. Bernstein is vice chair of the Bates College Board of Trustees and serves on the boards of the Samuel Rubin Foundation and Project Pericles, a consortium of universities committed to civic engagement and service learning.

Professor Bernstein has been an active scholar of American Indian history, particularly with respect to Native American women. Her responsibilities at Spelman College include teaching an undergraduate course entitled “Walking in Two Worlds: American Indian Women in the 20th Century.” In addition, she is writing a book on the history of American philanthropy, tracing its impact on higher education. She is the mother of twin daughters, Emma and Julia, recent graduates of Bates and Oberlin colleges, respectively.

In the months ahead, Dr. Bernstein will be coming to New Brunswick regularly to work with IWL member units in developing the future agenda. We are indeed fortunate to have her at Rutgers, and I know you will join me in giving Alison a warm welcome.

Richard L. McCormick
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey