James Edward Ryan is an American educator, author, lawyer, and legal scholar. A graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law and distinguished professor, Ryan took office as the 9th President of the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
on August 1, 2018.
Previously, he served as 11th dean of the
Harvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) is the education school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1920, it was the first school to grant the EdD degree and the first Harvard school ...
and the Charles William Eliot Professor of Education. He was installed as dean on July 1, 2013, succeeding Kathleen McCartney, who had been named President of
Smith College
Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith (Smith College ...
. He is also the author of ''Wait, What?: And Life's Other Essential Questions'' and ''Five Miles Away, A World Apart: One City, Two Schools, and the Story of Educational Opportunity in Modern America''. On September 15, 2017, it was announced that he would replace Teresa Sullivan as the ninth President of the University of Virginia.
His first act upon his inauguration on October 19, 2018, was to announce that in-state undergraduates from families making less than $30,000 per year would receive scholarships covering tuition, room, and board; and that in-state undergraduates from families making less than $80,000 per year would receive full scholarships covering tuition. Starting in fall 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he enacted strict restrictions on students.
Biography
Raised in
Midland Park, New Jersey
Midland Park is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 7,128,"James Ryan Reintroduces Himself To The University Community" ''UVA Today'', September 15, 2017. Accessed September 28, 2020. "I attended public schools in my hometown of Midland Park, a small, then mostly blue-collar town in Northern New Jersey."
Prior to serving as dean of
Harvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) is the education school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1920, it was the first school to grant the EdD degree and the first Harvard school ...
, Ryan was the Matheson and Morgenthau Distinguished Professor of Law and Weber Research Professor of Civil Liberties and Human Rights at the
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...
. He graduated from
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
and
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...
where he graduated
Omicron Delta Kappa
Omicron Delta Kappa (), also known as The Circle and ODK, is one of the most prestigious honor societies in the United States with chapters at more than 300 college campuses. It was founded December 3, 1914, at Washington and Lee University in ...
, and clerked for then-chief judge of the 9th Circuit
J. Clifford Wallace
John Clifford Wallace (born December 11, 1928) is a United States federal judge, Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the United States ...
and then-Supreme Court Chief Justice
William Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...
.
Ryan lives with his family in
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Ch ...
. Prior to accepting the UVA presidency, Ryan lived in
Lincoln, Massachusetts
Lincoln is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. The population was 7,014 according to the 2020 United States Census, including residents of Hanscom Air Force Base that live within town limits. The town, located in the MetroWest region o ...
with his wife, four children, and various animals including two cats, two dogs, and nine chickens.
See also
*
List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Chief Justice)
Law clerks have assisted the justices of the United States Supreme Court in various capacities since the first one was hired by Justice Horace Gray in 1882. Each justice is permitted to have between three and four law clerks per Court term. Th ...