President’s Cabinet

S. David Wu

President
S. David Wu, PhD, was appointed Baruch College’s eighth president on February 3, 2020, becoming the first Asian American to lead a CUNY college. From 2014 until his appointment at Baruch, Dr. Wu served as provost and executive vice president of George Mason University. Under his leadership, Virginia’s largest public research university emerged as a top-tier national research institution-the youngest university to earn Carnegie research-one (R1) designation. Prior to Mason, Dr. Wu was dean and Iacocca Professor of the Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science at Lehigh University where he had been a member of the faculty since 1987. He has served on numerous boards including Dartmouth College’s Thayer School of Engineering, the National Science Foundation, the Science Foundation of Ireland, the Research Grant Council of Hong Kong, and the Science & Engineering Research Council of Singapore. Dr. Wu is an accomplished scholar in systems engineering and operations research and has published extensively in areas such as game theory, optimization, and econometrics.

Linda Essig

Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Linda Essig, MFA, PhD, was appointed Baruch College’s Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs on July 1, 2021. She previously served as dean of the College of Arts & Letters at California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) where she was responsible for nine academic departments, four centers, and the Ronald H. Silverman Fine Arts Gallery. Prior to Cal State LA, Dr. Essig was director of Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Programs for the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University (ASU) and founding director of its School of Theatre and Film. She also served as chair of the Department of Theatre & Drama and director of University Theatre at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Essig has authored four books and numerous articles and book chapters on both arts entrepreneurship and theatrical lighting design.

Nancy Aries

Interim Marxe Dean, School of Public Affairs
Nancy Aries was appointed Interim Dean through June 2022. Recognition of the transformative nature of education led to many of her administrative positions. She was CUNY’s Interim University Dean for Undergraduate Education, the Marxe School’s Executive Director of Academic Programs and Director of Higher Education Program, Chair of the Zicklin School’s Department of Health Care Administration, and Director of the Baruch Honors Program where she organized Creative Inquiry Day, Baruch’s celebration of student research and creative endeavors. Her scholarship sits at the intersection of public policy and implementation effectiveness. Her work on the economic impact of biomedical research resulted in appointment to the Mayor’s Task Force on Biomedical Research. She has also studied women’s reproductive health policies and programs and healthcare workforce diversity. In 2021, she received the City & State award as one of the 50 over 50 Most Distinguished Public Servants and has been recognized at Baruch with the Presidential Excellence Award for Teaching and the Presidential Excellence Award for Service. Professor Aries holds a BA from the University of Michigan and PhD from the Heller School at Brandeis University.

Katharine T. Cobb

Vice President for Administration and Finance
Katharine T. Cobb joined Baruch College in May 2012 as Vice President for Administration and Finance. She comes to Baruch from fellow CUNY Queens College, where she was the Vice President for Finance and Administration. Prior to her work at Queens College, Katharine Cobb served as Deputy Administrative Assistant District Attorney in the Manhattan DA’s Office, and she was also Director of Legal Hiring. In her varied career, she was for many years a practicing lawyer in the District Attorney’s office; she also has been a consultant to the governments of Romania and Serbia and an adjunct professor at the Cardozo University School of Law. Kathy completed her BA at Brown University and received her JD from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Olga Dais

Assistant Vice President, Legal Counsel and Labor Designee
Olga Dais joined Baruch College in January 2015 as Assistant Vice President, Legal Counsel and Labor Designee. In that role she interprets and advises on College governance documents, Board of Trustees bylaws, and policies, regulations and rules affecting the staff of the College. Additionally, she administers and interprets employee collective bargaining agreements, and is responsible for assuring compliance with laws governing employment and contract interpretation. Previously she was Executive Director of Legal Affairs/Compliance Programs and served as Chief Legal and Compliance Officer at CUNY’s York College for 15 years. Prior to that, she was the Corporation Counsel/Chief Legal Counsel for the City of Mt. Vernon, NY, and General Counsel/Chief Legal Counsel for New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. Ms. Dais earned her BS from Cornell University, School of Industrial and Labor Relations and her JD from Hofstra University School of Law.

Arthur Downing

Vice President for Information Services and Dean of the Library
As Chief Librarian, Arthur Downing oversees library operations and an instructional program that includes a Minor in Information Studies. Under his direction the Newman Library received the prestigious Excellence in Academic Libraries Award from the Association of College and Research Libraries in 2003. As the College’s CIO, he provides leadership for IT services, systems, and infrastructure. Previously, at the New York Academy of Medicine he was concurrently the Academy Librarian, director of IT, and director of the Middle Atlantic Region of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine. He holds three degrees from Rutgers University (AB, MLS and PhD), as well as a master’s degree in Linguistics from NYU.

Mary Gorman

Vice President for Enrollment Management and Strategic Academic Initiatives
Mary Gorman currently serves as Vice President for Enrollment Management and Strategic Academic Initiatives. Before that, she served as Chief of Staff to four Baruch College presidents since her arrival in 2001. Ms. Gorman chaired the College’s Auxiliary Enterprise Corporation Board of Directors for eight years, managed the process that produced Baruch’s current strategic plan, and participated in CUNY’s Executive Leadership Development Program. Prior to joining Baruch College, she worked at New York University in a variety of roles including executive associate to the dean of the College of Arts and Science; director of orientation and freshman programs; academic advisor; director of an undergraduate honors program; and special events manager. Before beginning her career in higher education administration, Gorman worked as a researcher for the New York City Board of Correction and a writer for NYC Mayor Ed Koch. She holds a BA in Sociology and Religious Studies from New York University, where she also pursued graduate studies in Medieval History; she is currently working towards a degree in higher education administration.

H. Fenwick Huss

Willem Kooyker Dean, Zicklin School of Business
H. Fenwick Huss was appointed as the Willem Kooyker Dean of the Zicklin School of Business in July 2014. He previously served as Dean of the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University for ten years. While at Georgia State, Dr. Huss also served as Associate Dean and Director of the School of Accountancy. Huss was a faculty member at the University of Maryland and a visiting professor of managerial accounting and control at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.

He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), and he holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Connecticut and a doctorate in accountancy from the University of Tennessee. Huss has assisted universities in Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, the Republic of Georgia and South Africa in restructuring their business programs. He also directed USAID-funded development projects in South Africa, Ghana, and Egypt, and he has lectured extensively in the People’s Republic of China over the past two decades on business information needs in transition economies.

Sam Johnson

Chair, Faculty Senate
Sam Johnson, PhD, is a former chair of the Psychology Department at Baruch College, a counseling psychologist, and professor of Psychology. He sits on the President’s Cabinet as the chair of the Baruch College Faculty Senate. His research and teaching interests are in culturally competent clinical training and applied psychological training for intercultural competence. His academic career spans over 40 years of service at many institutions, most recently at Teachers College Columbia University.

While at Teachers College, Dr. Johnson pioneered multicultural curriculum development for professional psychologists at Columbia University. He is the founder of the Teachers College Winter Roundtable on Cross-Cultural Psychology and Education, the longest-running professional conference devoted to issues of diversity. During his tenure at Baruch, Dr. Johnson served as Baruch College’s first vice president for Student Development. He established fieldwork placements for master’s-level trainees in career and personal counseling. His administration established the first APA-approved Doctoral Internship Program at the City University of New York and it expanded and improved Peer Counseling Services.

Johnson led the development and implementation CUNY’s first Internet-based career development center at Baruch. He managed the integration of SEEK counseling services into student affairs and implemented card-reader traffic monitoring in student service offices. Johnson championed the adoption of CAS Standards for student services CUNY-wide and managed the development and implementation of service and business plans for Baruch’s Athletic and Recreation Center.

Art King

Vice President for Student Affairs & Dean of Students
Art serves as chief student affairs administrator at Baruch College. Before joining the College in 2014, he was Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at San José State University (SJSU). Prior to SJSU, he served as the Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs for Diversity and adjunct faculty member in the College of Education at Towson University, and before that, he held progressively responsible higher education leadership positions and adjunct faculty roles at George Mason University (GMU) and Georgia Southern University (GSU).

A staunch advocate for student-centered learning and engagement, Art is the recipient of several awards for enhancing the student experience and promoting inclusive excellence. He underwent specialized management training in leading transformation and change through the Management & Leadership in Education (MLE) Institute at Harvard University. Art completed PhD coursework in Conflict Analysis & Resolution at GMU, earned a MEd in Higher Education Student Development and BS in Communication Arts from GSU, and received an AAS in Mass Communication from the Barbados Community College.

Jessica Lang

Interim Dean-Designate, Weissman School of Arts and Sciences

Jessica Lang was appointed interim dean-designate of the George and Mildred Weissman School of Arts and Sciences in July 2020. Dr. Lang brings a wealth of academic, scholarly, and administrative experience to this position. As interim dean-designate, she will focus on a number of critical initiatives, including flexible course delivery, on-track graduation, supporting faculty research, and managing services and needs that arise in the distance learning environment.

Formerly chair and professor in the Department of English, Dr. Lang joined Baruch in 2004 as an assistant professor of English. Her areas of specialization span early American fiction and Jewish American and Holocaust literature. Her numerous publications include Textual Silence: Unreadability and the Holocaust and Off the Derech: Leaving Orthodox Judaism. Dr. Lang is the founding Newman Director of Baruch’s Sandra Kahn Wasserman Jewish Studies Center.

As department chair, Dr. Lang created a peer mentoring program for pre-tenure faculty members as part of a larger effort to support and recognize faculty accomplishments. To expand students’ horizons, she developed a “micro-study abroad” program for January Intersession. Her Baruch accolades include the 2017 Presidential Excellence Award for Distinguished Teaching. She holds a BA from Cornell University, an MA from Washington University in St. Louis, and a PhD from Brandeis University. She served as a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University before joining the Baruch faculty.

Christina Latouf

Vice President for Communications, External Relations & Economic Development
Christina Latouf joined Baruch College in 2008 as its Chief Communications and Marketing Officer. Specializing in integrated communications, she leads a team that crafts and implements the College’s identity and market position in support of its brand, strategy, and mission. Ms. Latouf was formerly an executive director of Time Warner Inc., the world’s largest media and entertainment company, where she built the marketing communications function for the global headquarters. She received her MBA from Baruch College’s Zicklin School of Business and her BA from New York University. Committed to making quality education accessible to all, Ms. Latouf has served on the board of the Beginning with Children Charter School and the city’s Department of Education on a committee devoted to problem solving for charter school leaders. Ms. Latouf is also on the advisory committee for the MA in Corporate Communications at Baruch College.

Kenya N. Lee

Chief of Staff
Kenya Nyota Lee has served the Office of the President at Baruch College since 2004 and has more than seventeen years of experience in higher education administration. Ms. Lee plays an integral role in the execution of the College President’s vision, overseeing strategic initiatives and projects. She is chair of the Auxiliary Enterprise Board, co-chair of College Senior Staff, co-founder of the Baruch Women’s Leadership Initiative and co-chair of the Baruch Employee Engagement Taskforce. In her multiple capacities she helps promote a campus culture of appreciation, leadership development, diversity, equity and inclusion. Ms. Lee’s professional experience also includes the magazine publishing and banking industries. Ms. Lee holds a BA in English from Queens College/CUNY and an MSED in Higher Education from Baruch College and is the Baruch College Institutional Representative for the ACE New York State Women’s Network.

David Shanton

Vice President for College Advancement
David joined Baruch in 2005 as Executive Director of Development and served as Acting Vice President of College Advancement at Baruch from September 2008 to February 2009 before his appointment as Assistant Vice President in 2010. Previously, he was a senior consultant with Marts & Lundy for three years, assisting nearly 75 clients throughout the country with their diverse fund-raising needs. He began his development career at St. John’s University where he spent 13 years building leadership giving, stewardship and research operations. He was a member of the APRA Board of Directors from 2003-09. David holds a BA degree from Utica College, an MA degree from Rutgers University (Eagleton Institute of Politics), and an MLS degree from St. John’s University.