Jonathan Fanton
Jonathan F. Fanton (born 1943) is the immediate past president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[1] He previously served as the president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation from 1999 to 2009 and as the president of The New School for Social Research from 1982 to 1999.[2] He has served as board chair for several organizations, including Human Rights Watch,[3] the Security Council Report,[4] and the New York State Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities.[5] He currently chairs the board of Scholars At Risk[6] and serves on the board of the Asian Cultural Council,[7] the board of the Benjamin Franklin House,[8] and was a member of the advisory board of the Newman’s Own Foundation.[9] He was elected a fellow of the American Academy in 1999.[10]
Jonathan F. Fanton | |
---|---|
President of American Academy of Arts and Sciences | |
Assumed office 2014 | |
Preceded by | Leslie Cohen Berlowitz |
3rd President of John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation | |
In office 1999–2009 | |
Preceded by | Adele Simmons |
Succeeded by | Robert L. Gallucci |
6th President of The New School for Social Research | |
In office 1982–1999 | |
Preceded by | John R. Everett |
Succeeded by | Bob Kerrey |
Personal details | |
Born | 1943 (age 76–77) |
Alma mater | Yale University |
Early life and career
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Fanton grew up in Trumbull and Weston, Connecticut. In 1961, he graduated from Choate School. At Yale University, he earned a baccalaureate degree in 1965, and a Ph.D. in American history in 1978.[11] As an undergraduate, Fanton directed the Ulysses S. Grant Program, a summer enrichment program for talented students from the inner city.[12] He went on to serve at Yale as associate provost and as an assistant to President Kingman Brewster.[13] He subsequently served as vice president for planning at the University of Chicago.[14]
Academic and nonprofit leadership
In 1982, Fanton was inaugurated president of The New School for Social Research in New York City, a leadership position that he held for 17 years.[15] One of his signature accomplishments as president was the reconnection of The New School to its European roots through assistance provided to dissident scholars in Eastern and Central Europe, many of whom were leaders of human rights organizations in their home countries.[12] After becoming president of the MacArthur Foundation in 1999, he worked to strengthen the organization’s commitment to a variety of issues, including international justice, human rights, peace and security, biodiversity conservation, and community and economic development.[12][16] From 2009 to 2014, Fanton was interim director of the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College.[12] Since July 1, 2014, he has served as the president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the oldest learned societies and independent policy research centers in the United States.[1]
He was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board in 2011.
Scholarship
Fanton is the author of Foundations and Civil Society, Volumes I and II (MacArthur Foundation, 2008) and The University and Civil Society, Volumes I and II (New School for Social Research, 1995, 2002). He is also co-editor of John Brown: Great Lives Observed (Prentice-Hall, 1973) and The Manhattan Project: A Documentary Introduction to the Atomic Age (McGraw-Hill, 1991).
References
- "American Academy of Arts and Sciences picks new president". Boston Globe. April 17, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "People in the News (4/20/14): Appointments and Promotions". Philanthropy News Digest. April 20, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Board of Directors". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "2009 Annual Report". Security Council Report Annual Report. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- Fanton, Jonathan F. (September 13, 1998). "Letter to the editor: Financial-Aid Partnership Keeps Higher Education Within Reach". New York Times. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
- "Board". Scholars At Risk. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Our Board of Trustees". Asian Cultural Council. Retrieved June 26, 2015..
- "Governance". Benjamin Franklin House. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Advisory Board". Newman's Own Foundation. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Alphabetical Index of Active Members" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Staff directory, Jonathan Fanton". Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Extraordinary Alumnus to Lead the American Academy of Arts and Sciences". Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Dr. Jonathan Fanton". International Criminal Court. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "American Academy of Arts and Sciences Names New President". New York Times. April 17, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "MacArthur Foundation's Fanton to End his Tenure as President". Chicago Tribune. June 24, 2008. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- "Past Presidents". MacArthur Foundation. Retrieved June 26, 2015.