Feinstein appointed SGIS founding dean

Former United States ambassador Lee Feinstein has been appointed founding dean of IU’s School of Global and International Studies, according to an IU news release.

The IU Board of Trustees approved the SGIS in August 2012. The school will be housed in a new building currently under construction on 10th Street across from Wells Library.

Feinstein was the U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Poland from 2009-2012 and has worked at research institutes the Council on Foreign Relations and the Brookings Institution.

He served as national security director for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her 2008 presidential campaign, according to an IU news release.

He was also a senior foreign policy adviser to President Barack Obama during the general election.

Feinstein does not have previous connections to IU, said Deborah Galyan, College of Arts and Sciences director of communications and marketing.

He was chosen through a national search that included a committee appointed by Larry Singell, executive dean of COAS.

“Ambassador Feinstein’s impressive record of engagement in diplomacy and international affairs and his scholarly knowledge of foreign policy issues will enable him to work effectively on behalf of the school in academic, government and professional sectors,” Singell said in a release. “He has both the vision and experience necessary to marshal the College’s considerable global and international resources and to launch IU’s new school into the top tier.”

In addition to his experience in government relations and policy, Feinstein was deputy director of studies and senior fellow for foreign policy and international law at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C., for five years, according to the release.

“We have great ambitions for the school, and it was imperative that we find a dean whose experience, intellect and understanding of the complex world into which we are sending our students match our aspirations for the school,” IU president Michael McRobbie said in the release. “Ambassador Feinstein’s extensive background and indisputable success at the highest levels of diplomacy and international affairs speak for themselves and make him an ideal candidate to serve as the school’s first dean.”

— Tori Fater