FAS hires 26 new full-time faculty for 2026-27 school year. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences hired widely recognized scholars in the fields of mathematics, political science, and anthropology, and more. By sofia wadler / deputy photo editor In interviews with Spectator, five new hires said they were excited about the opportunities at Columbia. By Simon Leton - september 17, 2026 at 8:52 PM. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences has hired 26 new full-time faculty members for the 2026-27 academic year, the FAS announced earlier this month. The new professors and lecturers span 13 academic departments, including mathematics, political science, and anthropology. In addition to the 478 tenured professors currently on the faculty, the FAS welcomed five new tenured faculty, including two new professors and three new associate professors. They are joined by five tenure-track assistant professors, two assistant professors not on the tenure track, seven postdoctoral teaching fellows in the mathematics department, and seven lecturers. In interviews with Spectator, five new hires said they looked forward to what they have already seen as an energetic academic environment. "I had so many people from the department reach out to me and offer support or congratulations, and that makes me feel very optimistic about moving across the country for this position," Erin Doherty, a new assistant professor of biological sciences, said. The FAS represents roughly 20 percent of the University's full-time faculty and about 40 percent of its tenured faculty. It oversees Columbia College, the School of General Studies, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the School of the Arts, and the School of Professional Studies. Amy Hungerford, dean and executive vice president of the FAS, described the new hires as contributing "path-breaking research, intellectual energy, and commitment to our students' learning and growth" that "will enrich the Arts and Sciences and Columbia in so many important ways." Simone Pinet, professor of Latin American and Iberian cultures, and Joshua Dienstag, professor of political science and husband of University President Jennifer Mnookin, have joined the FAS as tenured professors - a distinction awarded by trustees and reserved for scholars who have been "widely recognized for their distinction." Pinet, who previously taught at Cornell University, focuses on medieval and early modern Spanish literature and culture. This fall, she will teach a senior thesis course in the comparative literature department, a Hispanic cultures lecture, and a section of Literature Humanities. Discover more Literature Campus news updates Dienstag, whose research on political theory focuses on questions around time and narrative, has joined the department of political science. Dienstag joins Columbia from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where his wife served as chancellor. He is widely known for his book on pessimism and plans to teach a section of Contemporary Civilization in the spring, he told Spectator. The three new associate professors who also received tenure include Radhika Govindrajan, a sociocultural anthropologist focused on South Asia; Christina Yi, who studies modern Japanese literature; and Lue Pan, a mathematician specializing in algebraic number theory. Five new assistant professors will also be on the tenure track, ranging in disciplines from biological sciences to religion. The majority of this fall's appointees are not eligible for tenure, including two assistant professors in the statistics department and seven Joseph Fels Ritt assistant professors in the mathematics department, who are postdoctoral teaching fellows hired for up to four consecutive years. Seven new lecturers have also been hired to support teaching jazz, Chinese, economics, physics, psychology, and, in the School of Professional Studies, a career-oriented graduate school. Anamaria Alexandrescu, a new lecturer in the psychology department who previously served as a term assistant professor at Barnard, said that after the first week of classes, she was impressed by students' commitment to their coursework and willingness to discuss academics outside of class. "That speaks of the quality of teaching here as well," Alexandrescu said. "Professors are able to have them be engaged, where they carry out those conversations outside of the classroom; I was a bit shocked." In March 2025, the federal government cut over $400 million in grants and contracts to Columbia. The University has remained in the national spotlight following a contentious deal with President Donald Trump's administration to restore funding. Despite the uncertainty, some new faculty said they were unworried about continued threats to federal research funding. "I think things definitely are changing, but it doesn't mean that research funding is going away," Doherty said. Looking forward, new faculty expressed enthusiasm for their newfound intellectual home alongside more than 1,000 faculty members in the FAS. Discover more University funding news Student housing guide Take Journalism Courses "I'm excited about the future," John Chin, a new lecturer in the music department and director of the Louis Armstrong Jazz Performance Program, told Spectator. "I've had so much support from everyone on faculty and administration - I've been really optimistic about the future." Staff Writer Simon Leton can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow him on X @ simonoleton.

Federation of American Scientists, collaborators debut 'Future Systems' Policy proposals to build upon Colorado's success. Aug 31, 2026, 09:03 ET Coloradans deliver new policy ideas to strengthen the workforce, leverage the economic benefits of emerging technology, and increase land, climate and energy resilience - with support from the Institute for Science & Policy at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science DENVER, Aug. 31, 2026 /PRNewswire/ - With the shape of federal policymaking uncertain, and as midterm elections fast approach, states have a golden opportunity to experiment with policy and provide testing grounds for worthy policy ideas. To meet this unique moment, the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) teamed up with the Institute for Science & Policy (ISP) at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, and the Association of Scientific and Technological Centers (ASTC) to surface policy ideas for the Colorado Future Systems Policy Sprint. "With so much disruption and partisan gridlock at the federal level, states must step up to meet the challenges that concern the public with innovative policy solutions. As laboratories of democracy, states like Colorado can stress-test evidence-based policy solutions to address an aging labor market, climate change and shifting energy demands - challenges so many other states face as well," says Dr. Jedidah Isler, FAS Chief Science Officer. "Whoever wins Colorado's gubernatorial election should be equipped to provide for their public, and the proposals that emerged from the Colorado Future Systems Policy Sprint are a great place to start." From dozens of applications, FAS, ISP and ASTC chose the nine most promising for an intensive policy sprint, where contributors honed their ideas into action-ready policy memos, equipped with step-by-step instructions for implementation. The memos span issues central to Colorado's future: water scarcity, electric grid vulnerabilities, workforce development, energy capacity and more. All memos are tailored to Colorado's policy-creation process and are written by Coloradans. The Colorado Future Systems Policy Sprint is FAS's first state-level policy sprint. Policy sprints are key incubators for "policy entrepreneurship," FAS's method for equipping individuals with strong ideas with the technical assistance to develop policy. "Good decisions start with good processes," says Kristan Uhlenbrock, Executive Director of the Institute for Science & Policy at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. "What made this sprint valuable was not only the ideas that surfaced but how they were produced: with evidence, community engagement and a non-partisan approach. These are ideas from Colorado leaders and based on the realities communities are living in across the state." "The strongest policy proposals are built with the people who live with the challenges those policies aim to solve," said Christofer Nelson, President and CEO of ASTC. "ASTC connects science and technology with the public, and by bringing that to FAS's rigor in policy entrepreneurship and ISP's deep Colorado relationships and policy experience, we helped shape proposals informed by stakeholders from communities they're meant to serve." About Federation of American Scientists The Federation of American Scientists works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address national challenges. Learn more at fas.org. About Institute for Science & Policy Established in 2018, the Institute for Science & Policy at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science elevates evidence-informed and data-driving thinking on societally relevant issues. The Institute is non-partisan with an overall objective to make science a second-nature consideration in public discourse and policymaking by providing resources and tools to facilitate productive conversations. Learn more at institute.dmns.org. About Association of Scientific and Technology Centers Founded in 1973, the Association of Science and Technology Centers is a network of more than 600 science and technology centers and museums, and allied organizations, engaging nearly 110 million people annually across North America and in more than 35 countries. With its members and partners, ASTC works toward a vision of increased understanding of and engagement with science and technology among all people to enhance lives and livelihoods, strengthen communities and sustain the planet. Learn more at astc.org. SOURCE Institute for Science & Policy