Dear Alumni, dear Friends of LSE,
I am writing to share with you that Baroness Minouche Shafik, LSE’s 16th Director (a post we have recently renamed President and Vice Chancellor), has confirmed that she will be stepping down in summer 2023 to take up a new position as President of Columbia University. On behalf of the School, we congratulate Minouche on this appointment and thank her for her unwavering commitment and leadership over the past six years of service.
Under Minouche’s leadership, together with senior leaders from across the School community, LSE has achieved considerable success: enhancing the student experience and teaching, delivering research excellence and strengthening our place on the global stage. Thanks to the immense support of our alumni, donors, friends and strategic partners, our Shaping the World philanthropic and engagement Campaign has been pivotal in underpinning this success.
LSE’s Council has instructed a specialist search firm and appointed a diverse committee to lead on recruiting a new President and Vice Chancellor of LSE. As we embark upon this new chapter, we will actively welcome the views of our closest friends and advisors, including the invaluable insight of LSE’s Alumni Association Executive Committee, which represents the views of and acts as a voice for our alumni community.
We are fortunate to have in place an exceptionally strong senior management team that will provide continuity as we undertake our search. We will be appointing an interim President and Vice Chancellor, and that process will commence immediately.
LSE is well placed to build on the significant progress that has been made through our clear strategic direction, which was co-created by the entire School community and represents our collective vision. We will continue to invest in the future, embracing new ways of learning, utilising technology and data, training tomorrow’s leaders and advancing knowledge for the betterment of society. Our Shaping the World Campaign will continue to help to deliver many of these ambitions, having already, through the generous support of so many of our alumni and supporters, reached nearly £250m of our original £350m philanthropic goal and almost 90,000 volunteer hours towards our 100,000-hour target.
Building upon this great momentum, LSE Council and the School Management Committee are committed to growing our Campaign and associated engagement activities, and increasing our global impact even further. With your continued partnership, support, advice and advocacy, we will continue to drive forward our fundraising and engagement work to support our core School priorities.
Thank you, again, for your continued engagement with the School. We look forward to keeping you updated on all of our future plans over the coming months.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Susan Liautaud (PhD Social Policy 2009)
Chair of Council
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