john powell to lead Ohio State’s new Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas

Executive Vice President and Provost Edward J. Ray has recommended to the president the appointment of john a. powell as director of Ohio State’s new Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas, effective January 15, 2003, through June 30, 2006. Ray also recommended that powell be appointed the Gregory H. Williams Chair in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in the Moritz College of Law. Ohio State President William E. Kirwan will ask the university’s Board of Trustees to approve the appointments at its April 5 meeting.

powell, who does not capitalize his name, currently serves as executive director of the Institute on Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota and as Earl R. Larson Chair in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the university’s law school.

“Professor powell is a nationally known
scholar whose work explores such important issues as the intersections of race and poverty, race and housing policy, and the use of racial categories,” Ray said. “Professor powell founded the Institute of Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota. Under his leadership, the institute has studied and published reports on racial profiling, housing discrimination, and the relationship among housing, education, and segregation. We are very pleased that Professor powell will join us next year to lead our new institute. The institute will be unique and an exceptional addition to Ohio State’s academic programs, and it will benefit enormously from the leadership of john powell.”

As with any appointment of this magnitude, the Office of Academic Affairs conducted a national search for the director position, seeking individuals who were recognized internationally for their scholarship and leadership in the fields of race and ethnicity. Known for founding the Institute of Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota, Professor powell’s impressive credentials surfaced quickly, Ray said. The Williams chair, which powell will also hold, was created last year as a part of the late Michael E. Moritz’s recent gift to the university’s College of Law.

The institute is a key component of the university’s Academic Plan and it is being established to position Ohio State as an international research leader in the interdisciplinary field of race and ethnicity studies. The institute will encourage cutting-edge scholarship in an area of great importance. In addition, the institute will enhance the university’s effort to recruit and retain outstanding minority faculty members, an important priority of the university’s Diversity Action Plan.
“The Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas will help us establish the university as a leader in an emerging interdisciplinary field with significant opportunities for both academic recognition and external funding,” Kirwan said. “In addition, it will encourage scholarship in a field of overwhelming social, political, and cultural importance, advancing outreach on local, national, and global scales. And it will enable us to build a more diverse faculty by playing a role in the recruitment and retention of top minority scholars.”