Cornelius Martin "Neil" Kerwin (born April 10, 1949) is an American academic in
public administration and former president of
American University
The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
.
A 1971 undergraduate alumnus of American University, Kerwin continued his education with a
Master of Arts degree in
political science from the
University of Rhode Island in 1973. In 1975, Kerwin returned to his
alma mater and joined the faculty of the
American University School of Public Affairs
The American University School of Public Affairs (SPA) is an institution of higher education and research located in Washington, D.C. that grants academic degrees in political science, public administration, public policy, and justice, law and ...
, then the School of Government and Public Administration. Kerwin completed his
doctorate in political science from
Johns Hopkins University in 1978 and continued to teach until 1989, when he became the
dean of the school. In 1996, Kerwin was elected as a fellow of the
National Academy of Public Administration.
He continued in that post until 1997, when he was named American University's
provost. During his tenure as provost, Kerwin oversaw a number of major changes including the tightening of graduate and doctoral programs, the foundation of the University College Program, and comprehensive reviews and overhauls of the
General Education Program, University Honors Program and academic advising. Kerwin put his understanding of policy implementation to use in executing segments of then-
University president Benjamin Ladner
Benjamin Mance Ladner (born October 30, 1941) is an academic expert in the fields of philosophy and religion. He was president of American University from 1994 to 2005, when he was ousted.
His areas of professional interest and research are inte ...
's 15-Point Plan, including the establishment of a new faculty senate.
Following the American University
Board of Trustees
A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
' decision to suspend Ladner on August 25, 2005, Kerwin was named Acting President. He held that post through the Board's investigation and subsequent removal of Ladner. He was named to permanently replace Ladner on July 20, 2007. Kerwin is the first American University alumnus to serve as its University President.
Kerwin's academic work focuses on public policy, administrative and regulatory processes and implementation and American government. He is the author of ''Rulemaking: How Government Agencies Write Law and Make Policy'' and coauthor of ''How Washington Works: The Executive's Guide to Government''.
In the ''Chronicle of Higher Education'' survey of college presidents' salaries for 2007–08, he was fifth in the nation with a compensation of $1.4 million as a result of his 20-year signing bonus.
AU President Neil Kerwin said on March 28, 2016, that he would step down as president when his contract expired in May 2017.
References
External links
Official biography* https://archive.today/20130128165205/http://bios.marquiswhoswho.com/cornelius_martin_kerwin/academic_administrator_educator/6611245
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerwin, Cornelius M.
American University alumni
University of Rhode Island alumni
American non-fiction writers
1949 births
Living people
American political scientists
Leaders of American University