Former CEO returns to IU

IU professor Leslie Lenkowsky, who has served as the chief executive officer for the Corporation for National and Community Service while on a leave of absence, is returning to Bloomington. Lenkowsky, who was appointed to the position by three U.S. presidents, is a professor of public affairs and philanthropic studies in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs and the Center on Philanthropy.\nLenkowsky said in a statement he's pleased to be coming back. \n"I am delighted to return to Indiana University because after two years in Washington, it is clearer to me than ever that the finest programs and best scholarly resources in philanthropic studies and nonprofit management in the country are here," Lenkowsky said. "IU's students are the future leaders -- and guardians -- of our traditions of giving and volunteering, and I look forward to sharing my experience in government and elsewhere with them."\nCNCS is a federal agency that improves local communities through volunteer agencies like AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America and the National Senior Service Corps. During Lenkowsky's term, President George W. Bush proposed to increase the agency's budget to nearly $1 billion and to expand AmeriCorps and Senior Corps.\nAstrid Merget, dean of SPEA, said in a press release she's happy to see Lenkowsky returning. \n"Dr. Lenkowsky brings a distinctive blend of solid scholarship, exemplary professional experience and dedicated public service," Merget said, "that blend harmonizes with the school's mission and adds a rich asset to our community.\n"Our students will benefit from Dr. Lenkowsky's talent for integrating scholarship and practice. He will enhance our faculty with his expertise in civic engagement, nonprofit and philanthropic leadership, as well as public policy and management."\nExecutive Director of the Center on Philanthropy Eugene R. Tempel said Lenkowsky's experience with CNCS will benefit IU. \n"The richness of Dr. Lenkowsky's experience in philanthropic institutions and in government will enable him to offer our students a unique perspective on both sectors of American life and how they interact," he said. "He is a real asset to the University and truly devoted to his students. We are very happy that he has chosen to return to our philanthropic studies faculty."\nLenkowsky was appointed by President George W. Bush to lead CNCS in 2001 and stepped down last August. President Clinton appointed Lenkowsky as a founding director of CNCS and President George H.W. Bush named him to the Commission on National and Community Service.