Jonathan R. Alger

Jonathan R. Alger is an American academic and the current president of James Madison University. Alger became the university’s sixth president on July 1, 2012.[1][2] Alger is the sixth president since the university’s founding in 1908. He was formally inaugurated on March 15, 2013.[3]

Jonathan Alger
6th President of James Madison University
Assumed office
July 1, 2012
Preceded byLinwood H. Rose
Personal details
BornRochester, N.Y. area
SpouseMary Ann Alger
Children1
Residence(s)Harrisonburg, VA, U.S.
EducationSwarthmore College (BA), Harvard University (JD)
OccupationAttorney, university president, professor
WebsiteUniversity website

Alger is also a scholar and speaker on higher education policy and law[4] and currently co-teaches a seminar on leadership in the James Madison University Honors Program.[5][6]

Education

Alger was a Phi Beta Kappa at Swarthmore College where he received his B.A. with high honors in political science with a history minor and a concentration in public policy. He earned his Juris Doctor with honors from Harvard Law School.[7]

Career

Before becoming president at JMU, Alger was the senior vice president and general counsel at Rutgers University. Before working at Rutgers, Alger served as assistant general counsel at the University of Michigan, where he played a key role.[8][9] In the university’s efforts in two landmark Supreme Court cases on diversity and admissions he coordinated one of the largest amicus brief coalitions in Supreme Court history.[10] At both Rutgers and Michigan, he taught courses, seminars and independent studies in law, higher education and public policy. He has also taught interdisciplinary courses for graduate students in law, education, public policy and information.[4][11]

Prior to his time at University of Michigan, he served as counsel for the American Association of University Professors, where he advised institutions on policies, procedures and cases on issues such as academic freedom, shared governance, tenure, due process and discrimination.[12] Earlier in his career he served as attorney-advisor for the United States Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. He also previously served as an associate in the law firm of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius.[2]

Because of Alger’s background in civil rights law, he has been credited with understanding the intricacies of how the Office for Civil Rights interprets and enforces Title IX.[13]

President Alger, while declining to comment on a specific assault case at the school, acknowledged that he was concerned about public perceptions of the school, and appeared in a video created by JMU to raise public awareness of the problem. He also promised in a letter to the university community that the institution would do everything in its power to help keep its students safe.[13]

Boards, memberships and service

Current appointments:

  • Board Member, Division I Board of Directors for the National Collegiate Athletic Association[14]

Past appointments:

  • President, Board of Directors of the National Association of College and University Attorneys[15]
  • Board Member, The American Bar Association’s Accreditation Committee
  • Board Member, The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's Advisory Council at the National Institutes of Health[16]

Published works
  • Walton, Timothy R. (2014). The Role of Intelligence in Ending the War in Bosnia in 1995. London, United Kingdom: Lexington Books. pp. ix–xvi. ISBN 978-1-4985-0058-6. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  • Alger, Jonathan R. (Sep 2013). "A supreme challenge: Achieving the educational and societal benefits of diversity after the Supreme Court's Fisher decision". Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. 6 (3): 147–154. doi:10.1037/a0034355.
  • Alger, Jonathan R. (April 2010). "From Desegregation to Diversity and beyond: Our Evolving Legal Conversation on Race and Higher Education". Journal of College & University Law. 36 (3): 983. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  • Alger, Jonathan R. (June 2008). "Colleges Must Be Forearmed with Effective Policies on Weapons". Chronicle of Higher Education. 54 (39): A32. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  • Alger, Jonathan R. (June 2008). "Effective Practices for Academic Leaders". Legal Issues for Academic Leaders. 3 (2): 16.
  • Alger, Jonathan R. (February 2005). "Putting the Michigan Rulings Into Practice". Chronicle of Higher Education: B28. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  • Alger, Jonathan R.; Krislov, Marvin (2004). "You've Got to Have Friends: Lessons Learned from the Role of Amici in the University of Michigan Cases". Journal of College and University Law. 30: 503–506. Retrieved 2014-11-11.

Personal history and family

Alger was born and raised outside Rochester, N.Y. His wife, Mary Ann, has a B.S. from Auburn University and an M.B.A. from the University of Miami. The Algers have a daughter named Eleanor.[17]

Alger has sung with acclaimed choral groups that have toured internationally, made professional recordings and performed on national television.[18] Additionally, he used to play trombone.[19]

References
  1. Schmidt, Peter (2012-01-01). "A Lawyer Takes an Uncommon Path to a University Presidency". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  2. "James Madison University names new president". Virginia Business. 2011-11-28. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  3. Kapsidelis, Karin (2013-03-15). "JMU in 'moment of transition'". Richmond Times-Dispatch. BH Media. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  4. Trevor, Greg (2004-10-18). "Jonathan R. Alger appointed vice president and general counsel". Rutgers Focus. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  5. Flynn, Erin (2014-10-12). "President Alger co-teaches leadership honors course". The Breeze. James Madison University. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  6. "Fall 2014 Honors Course Offerings" (PDF). James Madison University. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  7. Gnagey, Laurel Thomas (2003-06-16). "The legal team: Jonathan Alger". The University Record Online. University of Michigan. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  8. "Perspective, Reflections on Institutional Leadership" (PDF). National Association for College Admission Counseling. pp. 2–5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-24. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  9. Reed, Nick (2003-04-24). "Attorney in Michigan case speaks on importance of affirmative action". The Lantern. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  10. "Grutter and Gratz: Amicus Briefs". University of Michigan Admissions Lawsuits. Archived from the original on 2014-07-13. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  11. Ostby, Kristin (2004-10-06). "'U' lawyer leaving for Rutgers position". The Michigan Daily. University of Michigan. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  12. "Search Results: Alger". American Association of University Professors. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
  13. Anderson, Nick (2014-09-26). "JMU president versed in civil rights law". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  14. "Agenda: National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Presidential Advisory Group" (PDF). NCAA. p. 3. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  15. "Persons Who Have Served on the NACUA Executive Board/Board of Directors" (PDF). National Association of College and University Attorneys. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  16. "National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council". National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. 2014-03-04. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  17. Woodroof, Martha (2014-03-21). "The Spark: Mary Ann Alger". WMRA. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  18. Parker, Alison (2012-02-12). "Q&A: President-Elect Jon Alger's agenda". The Breeze. James Madison University. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  19. Graves, Eric (2015-02-22). "A JMU President's Past". The Breeze. James Madison University. Retrieved 2018-03-23.



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