President of New York University
Sexton was named the 15th president of New York University by NYU's Board of Trustees on May 8, 2001, about two months after then-President L. Jay Oliva announced that he was stepping down. "I am a very fortunate man," Sexton told the New York Daily News in an article published the next day. He assumed the post of president on May 17, 2002, one day after the 2002 All-University Commencement, and his official installation occurred on September 26, 2002. In 2009, NYU’s Board of Trustees asked him to stay on as president until 2016, and Sexton accepted.
In addition to his duties as president, Sexton actively teaches; in 2008-09, he taught two courses for NYU undergraduates – a fall freshman seminar on the Supreme Court’s church and state cases, and a spring class for upperclassmen called “Baseball as a Road to God” (which he discussed at length in a conversation on Bill Moyers Journal). In addition, he taught a year-long course on the American Constitution, religion, and government for the Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Scholars Program (outstanding undergraduate students in United Arab Emirates’ institutions of higher learning who are selected for special academic and leadership opportunities).
During his presidency, NYU has been named the “number one dream school” four times by The Princeton Review. In 2009, a record number of prospective students applied to NYU for freshman admission.
As president, Sexton has written a number of “Reflections” on the nature of higher education and challenges facing universities. He has also discussed the nature of the university extensively on The Open Mind (TV series).
He appeared as a guest on The Colbert Report on December 6, 2006; during his time in the studio, he gave Mr. Colbert one of his famous hugs.
In May 2010, Sexton was profiled by Bloomberg Businessweek in an article that focused on his priorities for New York University.
In its 25th anniversary issue in June 2010, Crains New York Business named Sexton one of its 25 People to Watch.
In July 2010, he appeared on Charlie Rose (talk show) to discuss the global network university, NYU's Abu Dhabi campus, and the state of public discourse, among other topics.
In July 2012, he was featured in a story on the front page of the New York Times about one of the courses he teaches, Baseball as a Road to God (in addition to his duties as president, Sexton teaches a full faculty courseload).
Read more about this topic: John Sexton
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