Esteemed US professor Lawrence Abeln has been appointed by the Board of Trustees as the new President of Richmond, the American International University in London.
Professor Abeln, 49, has had a distinguished career in academic leadership and has a strong international background.
He has held previous posts at Cambridge University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He will be joining the faculty at the end of this month.
Dr Nicholas Tate, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Richmond, said they were ‘delighted to welcome Professor Abeln to Richmond,’ and he would be joining them at a ‘tremendously exciting time for the University,’ with the university having recently been granted Taught Degree Awarding Powers (TDAP) by the privy council, allowing students to get both a UK and US degree.
Professor Abeln graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in History from the University of Pennsylvania. He received an MPhil in International Relations and a PhD in Management from the University of Cambridge where he studied Labour Economics as a Rotary Foundation Scholar.
Professor Abeln said: ‘Richmond has a strong tradition as the UK’s leading American University in London with its international orientation, strategic location and heritage in liberal arts education.
‘The multi-disciplinary curriculum, commitment to a global orientation, and international exchanges are all hugely beneficial for students and their careers.
‘I look forward to working with our community of students, faculty, staff, alumni and institutional partners to continue to provide an outstanding experience.’
With a total of 1,500 students, the university is based across two campuses in London, in Richmond and Kensington, with additional sites in Florence, Rome and Leeds.
