Sally Kornbluth

Sally Kornbluth
Kornbluth in 2023
18th President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2023
Preceded byLeo Rafael Reif
Provost of Duke University
In office
July 1, 2014 – December 31, 2022
Preceded byPeter Lange
Succeeded byJennifer Francis (interim)
Personal details
Born
Sally Ann Kornbluth

1960 (age 63–64)
Education
Scientific career
FieldsCellular biology
InstitutionsDuke University
Duke Kunshan University
ThesisModulation of cellular SRC family tyrosine kinases: phosphorylation state and polyomavirus middle T antigen binding (1989)
Doctoral advisorHidesaburo Hanafusa
Other academic advisorsJohn Newport
Doctoral studentsDaniel Colón-Ramos

Sally Ann Kornbluth (born 1960) is an American cell biologist and academic administrator. She began serving as the 18th president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in January 2023.[1]

Early life and education

Kornbluth was born in Paterson, New Jersey, and grew up in Fair Lawn, New Jersey.[2] She is Jewish.[2] Her father George was an accountant[2] and her mother, Marisa Galvany, was an opera singer.[3]

Kornbluth received a Bachelor of Arts with a major in political science from Williams College in 1982 and a Bachelor of Science with a major in genetics from the University of Cambridge, in 1984. She received a Doctor of Philosophy in molecular oncology from the Rockefeller University in 1989.[4]

While at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, she was a Herchel Smith Scholar. She worked at the laboratory of Hidesaburo Hanafusa when at Rockefeller University,[5] and performed postdoctoral training with John Newport at the University of California, San Diego.[6][7]

Career

Duke University

Kornbluth joined the faculty at Duke University in 1994. Her research focuses on cell growth and programmed cell death and how cancer cells evade apoptosis.[8][9] She is interested in the role of programmed cell death in regulating the length of female fertility in vertebrates, in a mechanism regulated by caspase-2.[7][10][11]

At Duke she received a Research Mentoring award in 2012 and the Distinguished Faculty Award from the Duke Medical Alumni Association in 2013. She was elected to the Institute of Medicine in 2013.[12]

In 2014 Kornbluth became Provost at Duke, the first woman to serve in this role.[6][13] As Provost, she oversaw a leadership transition in which female Deans became a majority at Duke.[14] She is an advocate of liberal arts education and has stated that her own experience in a liberal arts school at Williams College led her to a career in the sciences.[15] She is also an advocate for on-line learning as a driver of pedagogic innovation.[16]

She also served as Chair of the Board of Trustees at Duke Kunshan University,[17] overseeing the appointment of Al Bloom as the university's Executive Vice Chancellor in 2020,[18] and the launch of the WHU-Duke Research Institute in 2014.[19]

Kornbluth served as provost from 2014 to 2022 and vice dean for basic sciences at Duke University School of Medicine from 2006 to 2014.[12][4]

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

In 2022, Kornbluth was selected as the 18th president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, succeeding L. Rafael Reif in this role in 2023.[20][1] At her inauguration she outlined objectives for the institute including accelerating work on climate change and strengthening links between engineering and life sciences.[21]

Following the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel,[22] Kornbluth and the presidents of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University were called to testify before a December 2023 congressional hearing about antisemitism on their campuses.[23] When asked by U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) whether calls for "genocide of Jews" was harassment under university policies, she responded, "If targeted at individuals, not making public statements."[24][25] Kornbluth's statement has been described by Stefanik and others as antisemitic, leading to calls by some for Kornbluth's resignation.[26]

Honors

Personal life

Kornbluth is married to Daniel Lew, a professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology at the Duke University School of Medicine. They have two children. Kornbluth is Jewish.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b Hartocollis, Anemona (October 20, 2022). "M.I.T. Names a Duke Provost as Its New President". The New York Times. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Bradt, Steve (October 27, 2022). "Sally Kornbluth is named MIT's 18th president". Jewish Journal. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  3. ^ Smith, Robin (October 31, 2014). "A scientist's unlikely path, with Duke Provost Sally Kornbluth". Duke Research Blog. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Sally Kornbluth". MIT Department of Biology. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  5. ^ Kornbluth, Sally Ann (1989). Modulation of cellular src family tyrosine kinases: Phosphorylation state and polyomavirus middle T antigen binding (Ph.D. thesis). The Rockefeller University. OCLC 38075792. ProQuest 303824168.
  6. ^ a b "Sally Kornbluth Named Duke University Provost" (Press release). Duke University. March 3, 2014. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Sedwick, Caitlin (July 7, 2014). "Sally Kornbluth: Nature's incredible contraptions". The Journal of Cell Biology. 206 (1): 4–5. doi:10.1083/jcb.2061pi. ISSN 0021-9525. PMC 4085709. PMID 25002675.
  8. ^ "Sally Kornbluth, Ph.D." Duke University School of Medicine - Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  9. ^ Matsuura, K.; Huang, N.-J.; Cocce, K.; Zhang, L.; Kornbluth, S. (2017). "Downregulation of the proapoptotic protein MOAP-1 by the UBR5 ubiquitin ligase and its role in ovarian cancer resistance to cisplatin". Oncogene. 36 (12): 1698–1706. doi:10.1038/onc.2016.336. ISSN 1476-5594. PMC 5447866. PMID 27721409.
  10. ^ Nutt, Leta K.; Margolis, Seth S.; Jensen, Mette; Herman, Catherine E.; Dunphy, William G.; Rathmell, Jeffrey C.; Kornbluth, Sally (October 7, 2005). "Metabolic regulation of oocyte cell death through the CaMKII-mediated phosphorylation of caspase-2". Cell. 123 (1): 89–103. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2005.07.032. ISSN 0092-8674. PMC 2788768. PMID 16213215.
  11. ^ "The Collaborator". MIT News.
  12. ^ a b "Sally Kornbluth, vice dean for basic science at Duke, named to Institute of Medicine" (Press release). Duke Medicine. October 21, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  13. ^ Muoio, Danielle (July 1, 2014). "Meet Sally Kornbluth: the first female provost". The Chronicle (Duke University). Archived from the original on March 19, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  14. ^ WRAL (July 26, 2018). "'Two remaining men': Female leaders become majority at Duke schools". WRAL.com. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
  15. ^ Yang, Robert (March 12, 2014). "Duke appoints Kornbluth as provost". The Williams Record. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
  16. ^ Anders, George. "Duke's Sally Kornbluth Gives Online Learning Top Marks". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
  17. ^ "Board of Trustees | Duke Kunshan University". dukekunshan.edu.cn. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  18. ^ "Global education leader Al Bloom to be executive vice chancellor | Duke Kunshan University". dukekunshan.edu.cn. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  19. ^ "Overview | Duke Kunshan University". dukekunshan.edu.cn. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  20. ^ Bradt, Steve (October 20, 2022). "Sally Kornbluth is named as MIT's 18th president". Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  21. ^ "The collaborator". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  22. ^ Belkin, Douglas; Ellis, Lindsay (October 11, 2023). "Blaming Israel for Hamas Attacks Sparks Backlash Across U.S., Exposing Deep Rifts". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  23. ^ Haslett, Cheyenne; Hensley, Sarah Beth (December 5, 2023). "Presidents of universities grilled on efforts to counter antisemitism on campus". ABC News. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  24. ^ Damiano, Mike; Burns, Hilary (December 6, 2023). "University presidents' responses to genocide question at congressional hearing draw furor". The Boston Globe. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  25. ^ Borter, Gabriella (December 6, 2023). "US House Republicans grill university presidents over campus antisemitism". Reuters. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
  26. ^ "University presidents face investigation, walk back responses after heated hearing on antisemitism". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
Academic offices
Preceded by President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2023–present 		Incumbent