Initial Recommendations to Provost Angela V. Olinto made by Miguel Urquiola, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Initiatives

February 2026

Note: These recommendations were developed with focused advice from the Provost’s Regional Review Committee, listed below, and input from many faculty and staff members.

  • Lisa Anderson
    James T. Shotwell Professor Emerita of International Relations; Dean Emerita of the School of International and Public Affairs; Special Lecturer in the Faculty of International and Public Affairs
     
  • Bruno G. Bosteels
    Dean of Humanities in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences; Jesse and George Siegel Professor in the Humanities
     
  • Clémence C. Boulouque
    Carl and Bernice Witten Associate Professor of Jewish and Israel Studies
     
  • Karuna Mantena
    Professor of Political Science
     
  • Timothy P. Mitchell
    William B. Ransford Professor of Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies and Professor of International and Public Affairs
     
  • Alex Raskolnikov
    Wilbur H. Friedman Professor of Tax Law
     
  • Rhiannon Stephens
    Professor of History


The following are the committee’s initial recommendations:

1. Expand coursework on the Middle East broadly defined, particularly within the social sciences, by developing offerings that complement – and are clearly differentiated from – courses offered by MESAAS (Middle East, South Asia, and African Studies), which emphasize humanistic, language-based, comparative, and transregional approaches. 

2. Strengthen the faculty basis for such expanded coursework. Sustained curricular change ultimately depends on faculty appointments. Work in this area is underway through both temporary appointments and ongoing searches to fill permanent positions, with possibly more to come. 

Temporary/visiting appointments are desirable not only because they add variety and expertise to the curriculum, but also because, as is typical at schools seeking top talent, permanent faculty recruitment takes time, and searches can be repeated or modified. To elaborate, the following initiatives—including some that predate this committee’s work—are ongoing (by field, in alphabetical order):

  • Economics
    • The Economics Department has appointed a visiting professor to teach about applying economic analysis to countries in the Middle East. The course (“Economic Policy in the Middle East”) is ongoing (Spring 2026), with significant enrollments and with the possibility of further iterations.
    • The Economics Department and IIJS (Institute of Israel and Jewish Studies) have advertised for a joint position. The search is ongoing.
       
  • History
    • IIJS has made arrangements to host a multi-year visiting appointment for a professor to teach about the history of modern Israel. The first class is expected for Fall 2026.
    • The History Department has advertised to fill the “Edward Said Professorship in Modern Arab Studies and Literature.” The search is ongoing.
       
  • Policy
    • SIPA has appointed (jointly with IIJS) a visiting professor to teach courses on the Jewish world and on Middle East policy. The position is for a three-year term; course offerings will begin in 2026.
    • In 2026, SIPA will launch an open-rank search for a professor of Israel and Jewish Studies, jointly with IIJS. The appointment may be on the tenure- or practice-track.
    • SIPA is finalizing arrangements for a visitor to teach about economic and other policy issues in Israel. This is expected for Fall 2026.
       
  • Political Science
    • The Department of Political Science is actively considering launching a search for a permanent faculty member to be appointed jointly with IIJS.
       
  • These and other recruitment efforts will provide a solid basis for expanding the Middle East curriculum. Where feasible, additional hiring could further strengthen coursework focused on other areas such as the Gulf region and North Africa.
     

3. Sustain and, where possible, expand the faculty positions described, by continuing fundraising efforts, with support from the President and Provost.

4. Build on the offerings and faculty hiring discussed to create an undergraduate minor and/or major focused on social science and policy analysis of the Middle East. As stated, this program would be differentiated from existing offerings, and its final designation and administrative location would be determined at a later date. A logical initial – and potentially long-term – location would be as a track within the SIPA undergraduate major or minor, which has received conditional approval from the Committee on Instruction (COI).

5. Encourage cross-listing of courses where appropriate. When feasible and academically warranted, cross-listing among IIJS, MESAAS, and the proposed new program would increase student access and exposure to a range of methodologies and analyses of the Middle East.

6. Clarify the administrative home and governance of the CGT. Historically, CGT (Committee on Global Thought) has operated with some presidential support and was administratively tied to Arts & Sciences. It is currently also connected to Columbia Global. Future governance should be clarified by:

  • assigning responsibility for the appointment of the CGT Chair to the Provost, changing CGT bylaws as needed, and subject to the Executive Committee’s approval, and
  • locating the CGT administratively within Arts & Sciences, consistent with the reasons discussed below.
     

7. Improve coordination among regional institutes. Maintain the European Institute, the Institute of African Studies, the Institute of Latin American Studies, the Middle Eastern Institute, and the South Asia Institute, as well as the centers they administratively contain, under their current bylaws (this includes retaining procedures for the appointment of their directors). In addition, consolidate the administrative structures of these five regional units with those of CGT. The five units are financially smaller and, in some cases, not in a strong financial position. Larger and more extensively endowed units, such as Harriman and Weatherhead, would remain administratively separate. Coordinated administrative support through CGT would provide flexibility to respond to varying levels of activity across institutes over time, as well as the availability of faculty willing to serve as their directors. To support this consolidation:

  • Appoint the directors of these five units to be “ex officio” CGT members. Doing so would require the approval of the CGT Executive Committee and the willingness of the directors to serve in this capacity. The potential payoff would be further intellectual and programmatic coordination in the University’s regional work.
  • Provide significant “non-renewable” funding for programming. Priority would be given to the five administratively consolidated units, with particular attention to areas that have seen less funding and activity in recent years (e.g., Africa). This would require support and approval from the Provost and/or the Executive Vice President for Arts & Sciences. If approved, these funds would be administered by CGT to help re-energize regional programming.