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November
2001: In Brief
Columbia
Professor Wins
Nobel Prize in Economics
Columbia
University professor, Josep Stiglitz was awarded the Nobel Prize
in economics recently by the Royal Swedish Academy of Science.
Stiglitz won the award along with two other college professors—George
Akerolof of the University of California, Berkeley and A. Michael
Spence of Stanford University—for “their analyses of markets with
asymmetric information.”
The Academy noted that Stiglitz “clarified the opposite type of
market adjustment, where poorly informed agents extract information
from the better informed.” Also, noted the Academy, Stiglitz’
emphasis on asymetric information “can provide the key to understanding
many unobserved phenomena, including unemployment and credit rationing.”
Stiglitz, former chief economist of the World Bank, became the
latest of five Columbia faculty members in the last six years
to win the revered prize. This is the third time a Columbia professor
receive the Nobel Prize in economics.
Stiglitz has promoted the idea of government investment in public
accommodations, such as schools. In his 35-year career, he has
published a dozen books and more than 300 papers. Stiglitz’s Initiative
for Policy Dialogue, intends to provide an alternative to the
IMF and World Bank for countries in need of sound economic policy
advice.
After receiving the phone call from the Nobel selection committee,
Stiglitz “quickly switched from coffee to champagne” but has since
said that his acceptance of the reward has been “tinged by the
fact that many innocent people have died in recent days.”#
John Sexton Named NYU
President
In May 2002, John Sexton will relieve L. Jay Oliva of the post
he has held for 11 years and become the next president of New
York University (NYU). Currently the Dean of the NYU School of
Law where he is known for drawing some of the best law scholars
onto his faculty, Sexton was unanimously nominated by the recommendation
committee and unanimously elected by the Board of Trustees.
After receiving his M.A. and Ph.D. from Fordham and his J.D. degree
magna cum laude from Harvard, Sexton served as a U.S. Supreme
Court clerk under Warren E. Burger before eventually coming to
NYU in 1981. He has taught throughout his time there and been
a prolific writer. His works include Redefining the Supreme
Court’s Role: A Theory of Managing the Federal Court System,
a major 1,200-page volume, and Civil Procedure: Cases and Materials,
which he co-wrote and is the most widely used of legal textbooks.
On Dr. Sexton’s nomination, Oliva said, “He has a deep understanding
of the complex and critical relationship among the schools of
a large research university such as this. While doing so much
to enhance the School of Law, he has never lost sight of the proposition
that great universities rest on a strong undergraduate program.”
Columbia Names New
President
Lee C. Bollinger, president of the University of Michigan, has
been named the 19th president of Columbia University.
Bollinger will replace Dr. George Rupp who has been Columbia’s
president since 1993, assuming his post in the summer of 2002.
“It
[Columbia] occupies a unique position: a truly global university
that is also part of the fabric of New York City. I am enthusiastic
about joining in this continued educational and civic renaissance
from the vantage point of Columbia’s presidency,” said Bollinger,
who was described as “a dynamic leader and an academic visionary”
by Henry L. King, chair of the search committee.
At Michigan, Bollinger was the chief executive officer of the
University’s 19 schools and colleges, which draw 53,000 students
from every state in the US and 130 countries.
In developing new initiatives and leading the legal battles to
uphold the University of Michigan’s affirmative action policies
in student admissions, Bollinger has been at the forefront of
advancing programs that are considered critically important to
colleges and universities across America. In addition, he is the
author of various books, articles and essays on free speech and
First Amendment issues including the critically acclaimed Eternally
Vigilant: Free Speech in the Modern Era.#
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the publisher. © 2001.
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