Lee Bollinger

Early life and education

Bollinger was born in Santa Rosa, California, the son of Patricia Mary and Lee C. Bollinger. He was raised in Santa Rosa, California, and Baker City, Oregon.

In 1963, Bollinger spent a year as an exchange student in Brazil with AFS Intercultural Programs. He received a Bachelor of Science with a major in political science from the University of Oregon in 1968, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and was a brother in Theta Chi fraternity. He received a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in New York City in 1971.

Career

In 1971 and 1972, Bollinger served as a law clerk to Judge Wilfred Feinberg of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In 1972 and 1973, he was a law clerk to Chief Justice Warren Burger of the Supreme Court of the United States.

In 1973, Bollinger joined the faculty of the University of Michigan Law School, becoming a full professor in 1979, and dean of the school in 1987.

In 1994, he was appointed provost of Dartmouth College, before returning to the University of Michigan, where he served as 12th president from February 1, 1997, to December 31, 2001.

Columbia University president

Bollinger assumed his position as president of Columbia University in June 2002.{{cite web | access-date = 20 October 2009 }}

In 2003, Bollinger was a named defendant representing the University of Michigan in the Supreme Court cases Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger.{{cite news

In 2004, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society.

Bollinger lived in the Columbia President's House from February 2004 until the end of his tenure as president, after the building underwent a $23 million renovation.

In November 2006, Bollinger was elected to the Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, a term lasting for three years.

On October 19, 2010, the Board of Trustees announced through a university-wide email that Bollinger had agreed to continue as president for at least the next five years.

Bollinger was the subject of criticism for his role in advocating the expansion of the university into the Manhattanville neighborhood and the use of eminent domain to help it seize property there. The Bollinger administration's expansion plans were criticized as fundamentally incompatible with the 197/a plan for development crafted by the community, and for failing to address the neighborhood's need to maintain affordable housing stock.

Bollinger attempted to expand the international scope of the university, took frequent trips abroad and invited world leaders to its campus. Bollinger was criticized for taking a neutral public position on controversies regarding the Middle East Languages and Cultures (MEALAC) department.

In 2013, Bollinger's total compensation was $4.6 million, making him the highest paid private college president in the United States.

At a January 2021 rally during a student tuition strike protesting the university's tuition rates, Young Democratic Socialists of America organizers cited as further evidence of alleged inequitable allocation of university resources the fact that Bollinger's salary had been frozen that year, while Barnard College administration's salaries had been cut, including by 20 percent in the case of Sian Beilock, Barnard College's president.

In February 2022, the Columbia Daily Spectator reported that Bollinger had purchased an Upper West Side apartment for $11.7 million. In 2008, his salary was $1.7 million.

Bollinger's residence was the site of demonstrations in which his high salary was criticized as an example of the university's "inequitable allocation of resources."

World Leaders Forum

Columbia invited Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak at the World Leaders Forum on September 24, 2007. A number of local and national politicians denounced Columbia for hosting Ahmadinejad.

Bollinger described the event as part of "Columbia's long-standing tradition of serving as a major forum for robust debate, especially on global issues." Bollinger released a statement outlining his introduction, explaining to the student body that the free speech afforded to Ahmadinejad was for the sake of the students and the faculty rather than for the benefit of Ahmadinejad himself, whom Bollinger referred to as "exhibiting all the signs of a petty and cruel dictator."

Bollinger was criticized by students at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs, but praised by Bob Kerrey who said that Bollinger "turned what could have been an embarrassment for higher education into something quite positive."

Federal Reserve Bank of New York

In July 2010, he was appointed chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York board of directors for 2011. Previously, he had served as deputy chair.

Retirement

On April 14, 2022, Bollinger announced in an email to the Columbia student body that he would be retiring from his role as President effective June 30, 2023. In January 2023, Columbia announced that Minouche Shafik, president of the London School of Economics, would succeed him as president of the university.

Personal life

Bollinger is married to artist Jean Magnano Bollinger. They have a son and a daughter and five grandchildren. Bollinger's family is Catholic.

Books

In addition to his academic and administrative positions, Bollinger has written many articles and books on the subject of free speech.

• The Tolerant Society: Freedom of Speech and Extremist Speech in America (Oxford University Press, 1986)
• Images of a Free Press (University of Chicago Press, 1991)
• Eternally Vigilant: Free Speech in the Modern Era (University Of Chicago Press, 2002)
• Uninhibited, Robust, and Wide-Open: A Free Press for a New Century (Oxford University Press, 2010)
• The Free Speech Century (Oxford University Press, 2018)
• Regardless of Frontiers: Global Freedom of Expression in a Troubled World (Columbia University Press, 2021)
• National Security, Leaks and Freedom of the Press: The Pentagon Papers Fifty Years On (Oxford University Press, 2021)
• Social Media, Freedom of Speech, and the Future of our Democracy (Oxford University Press, 2022)
• A Legacy of Discrimination: The Essential Constitutionality of Affirmative Action (Oxford University Press, 2023)

References

References

1. "A Texture of Mind and Manner". Columbia Magazine.
2. "About the President | Office of the President".
3. "Lee C. Bollinger." ''Newsmakers'', Issue 2. Gale Group, 2003.
4. (July 19, 2010). "Fed Announces Chairs of Regional Banks for 2011". The Wall Street Journal.
5. "Guides: University of Michigan Law School History Timeline: Home".
6. (11 August 2021). "Past Provosts".
7. (2006-12-08). "Lee Bollinger to assume U-M presidency Feb. 1".
8. "Lee Bollinger {{!}} Institute for the Study of Human Rights".
9. "Three Columbians Elected to the American Philosophical Society".
10. (August 2025). "President's House }}{{Dead link".
11. (May 25, 2005). "Columbia's Chief, Free Speech Expert, Gets Earful". The New York Times.
12. [http://www.efinancialnews.com/usedition/index/content/1046681911 Dow Jones Online Financial News NY Fed board appointment]
13. Greenwell, Megan. (2008-11-30). "Bollinger Stays Popular Even In Hard Times". Columbia Spectator.
14. Eviatar, Daphne. (May 21, 2006). "The Manhattanville Project". The New York Times.
15. [http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/04/01/columbia# Inside Higher Ed, War and Peace at Columbia]
16. [http://www.campus-watch.org/article/id/1335 Statement from Lee C. Bollinger on the David Project Film]
17. (6 December 2015). "Salaries of Private College Presidents Continue to Rise, Chronicle Survey Finds". The New York Times.
18. (18 January 2021). "Local candidates join student organizers, back largest tuition strike in history at Sunday rally=Columbia Spectator". Columbia Spectator.
19. (8 February 2022). "President Bollinger acquires $11.7 million Upper West Side apartment". Columbia Spectator.
20. Staff Reports, 'Vandy chancellor among top earners', ''[[The Tennessean]]'', November 14, 2010 [http://www.tennessean.com/article/20101114/NEWS01/101114016/Vandy-chancellor-among-top-earners]
21. (8 February 2022). "President Bollinger acquires $11.7 million Upper West Side apartment". Columbia Spectator.
22. Kadushin, Peter. (September 23, 2007). "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrives in Manhattan". Daily News.
23. (AFP) – Sep 20, 2007. (2007-09-20). "AFP: Controversy swirls around Iranian leader's visit to New York".
24. (September 24, 2007). "Lee Bollinger, Tough Guy". The Wall Street Journal.
25. [https://archive.today/20120720191635/http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=5665164 Outrage over Iranian president's NYC visit] September 20, 2007
26. (2007-09-19). "President Bollinger's Statement about President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Scheduled Appearance at Columbia". Columbia News.
27. (2007-09-24). "Ahmadinejad speaks; outrage and controversy follow - CNN.com".
28. "An Open Letter to President Bollinger".
29. Karni, Annie. (September 25, 2007). "Bollinger Stuns Ahmadinejad With Blunt Rebuke". NY Sun.
30. "Columbia University Names Minouche Shafik 20th President".
31. (January 2011). "Biography". Columbia University.
32. (13 July 2008). "Jennifer Ellis and Lee Bollinger". The New York Times.
33. (22 July 2012). "Carey Bollinger and Benjamin Danielson". The New York Times.