President of Columbia University

President of Columbia University
Incumbent Lee Bollinger since June 1, 2002 (2002-06-01)
Appointer	Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York
Formation	1754
First holder	Samuel Johnson
Website	https://president.columbia.edu/

The president of Columbia University is the chief officer of Columbia University in New York City. The current president is Lee Bollinger, whose tenure began in 2002.

Powers and duties[]

As established by Columbia University's governing statutes, it is the duty of the president to exercise jurisdiction over all affairs of the university; to call special meetings of the University Senate, faculties, and administration; to report to the Trustees of Columbia on the state and needs of the university annually; and to administer discipline.^[1]

The consent of the president is necessary for act of made by a faculty or administrative board, unless their veto is overridden by two-thirds vote. Additionally, the president is able to grant leaves of absences, give faculty permission to use university laboratories for experiments, and confer academic and honorary degrees on behalf of the board of trustees.^[1]

The president is ex officio a permanent member of the Pulitzer Prize Board, and has annually presented the awards to its recipients since 1984.^[2]

List of presidents[]

#	Image	President	Birth Year–Death Year	Years as President	Notes
1		Samuel Johnson[3]	1696–1772	1754–1763
2		Myles Cooper[3]	1735–1785	1763–1775
–		Benjamin Moore, B.A. 1768[3]	1748–1816	1775–1776	acting
–		George Clinton[4]	1739–1812	1784–1787	Chancellor (Regents government); 1st Governor of New York and later 4th Vice President of the United States
3		William Samuel Johnson[3]	1727–1819	1787–1800	signed the Constitution of the United States; served as United States Senator from Connecticut
4		Charles Henry Wharton[3]	1748–1833	1801–1801
5		Benjamin Moore, B.A. 1768[3]	1748–1816	1801–1810
6		William Harris[3]	1765–1829	1811–1829	shared authority with Provost John Mitchell Mason until 1816
7		William Alexander Duer[3]	1780–1858	1829–1842
8		Nathaniel Fish Moore, B.A. 1802[3]	1782–1872	1842–1849
9		Charles King[3]	1789–1867	1849–1863	presided over move to Madison Avenue campus
10		Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard[3]	1809–1889	1864–1888
–		Henry Drisler, B.A. 1839[5]	1818–1897	1867, 1888–1889	acting
11		Seth Low, B.A. 1870[3]	1850–1916	1890–1901	presided over move to Morningside Heights campus
–		John Howard Van Amringe, B.A. 1860, M.A. 1863[6]	1836–1915	1899	acting
12		Nicholas Murray Butler, B.A. 1882, M.A. 1883, Ph.D. 1884[3]	1862–1947	1902–1945	Nobel Peace Prize laureate
–		Frank D. Fackenthal, B.A. 1906[3]	1883–1968	1945–1948	acting
13		Dwight D. Eisenhower[3]	1890–1969	1948–1953	on leave while Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, later 34th President of the United States
14		Grayson L. Kirk[3]	1903–1997	1953–1968	resigned after 1968 protests
15		Andrew W. Cordier[3]	1901–1975	1969–1970
16		William J. McGill[3]	1922–1997	1970–1980
17		Michael I. Sovern, B.A. 1953, J.D. 1955[3]	1931–2020	1980–1993
18		George Erik Rupp[3]	born 1942	1993–2002
19		Lee C. Bollinger, J.D. 1971[3]	born 1946	2002–	presided over construction of Manhattanville campus

References[]