Sonia Feigenbaum, a former official at the U.S. Department of Education, will assume the post of associate provost for international affairs Nov. 1.
Professor of Anthropology Matthew Gutmann P'14 stepped down from the position, which he held since 2009, at the end of June, Gutmann wrote in an email to The Herald. Deputy Provost Joseph Meisel has served as interim associate provost since Gutmann’s departure, wrote Provost Mark Schlissel P’15 in an email to The Herald.
Feigenbaum previously served as director of Hispanic-Serving Institutions for the Department of Education, where she managed the distribution of federal funds for higher education institutions with high numbers of Hispanic students and low-income students, according to the Department of Education’s website.
During his tenure, Gutmann helped articulate and build a coherent strategy for the University’s “global engagement,” he wrote. “As Brown’s global ambassador, I helped build and consolidate ties with leading foreign institutions, always building on existing and potential Brown strengths and priorities.”
The Office of International Affairs continues to work on projects including the Brown International Advanced Research Institutes and the IE-Brown Executive M.B.A. Program, Gutmann wrote. BIARI brings scholars and policymakers to campus to discuss a wide range of international issues, according to the program’s website. The University launched the IE Brown Executive M.B.A. Program in 2011 as a partnership with the Instituto Empresa Business School in Spain to provide advanced training to business professionals in an international environment, The Herald previously reported.
The University selected Feigenbaum because of her expertise in academics and international programs, Schlissel wrote.
“Feigenbaum brings to Brown academic experience from earlier in her career, having taught at several colleges and universities, as well as her experience working for a major federal agency, running relevant international programs of various types,” Schlissel wrote.
“This combination of expertise made her a very attractive candidate for this position,” Schlissel said. Feigenbaum was chosen as Gutmann’s successor by a search committee led by Meisel, Schlissel wrote.
Prior to working for the Department of Education, Feigenbaum was a faculty member in the department of modern languages and literatures and the department of comparative literature at Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., according to the Department of Education’s website. She taught Latin American and comparative literature at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., and at the University of Maryland University College in Adelphi, Md.
Feigenbaum also served as an official for public education programs at the National Endowment for the Humanities, where she increased the number of funded initiatives focused on international affairs, according to the Department of Education’s website. She could not be reached for comment.
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