NYU Alumni Magazine: Letter from the President

letter from the president

Spring is the season of renewal, when we wake with expectation from the winter. As we mark a new era in Washington, D.C., and a fresh chance to tackle the challenges of the day, we have rarely felt the need for rebirth more vividly or more urgently. After taking in the harrowing economic news of recent months, it feels like we are staring down one of the greatest tests of our lifetime.

Such was the sentiment among scholars at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business last fall when they watched the astonishing global economic crisis unfold. Even as they rushed to make sense of the ruin, they realized that they must put forward their best ideas on how to rebuild a stronger financial future. The Obama administration has taken note of their recommendations, as seen in this magazine’s feature, “Economy: Code Red,” and in a new book published in March.

Barack Obama’s ascendency to the presidency has not only prompted new hopes for economic policy; it has also inspired many to wonder whether we now live in a “postracial” society. While the researchers featured in “Can We Talk?” wouldn’t say we’ve come that far, there is consensus that we’re in a better place than ever to have a frank conversation about how race affects our work and personal lives.

From this introspection, the magazine widens its lens to look at NYU’s efforts to redefine the term “global education.” In order to truly understand the world in which we live—and to help that world understand us—the university is expanding overseas to a branch campus in Abu Dhabi and a network of new study-abroad sites, as examined in “Walking the Global Walk.”

As always, we hope this issue of NYU Alumni Magazine offers you new opportunity for both reflection and connection.

—John Sexton

NYU at the far reaches of the Globe: Brittany Laughlin (Stern ’06), Trustee Jay Furman (Law ’71), and president John Sexton pose with Adelie penguins during a recent trip to Antarctica.