Kevin C. Matthews '80 has been named the new executive director of the Double Discovery Center, effective July 1.

It will be Matthews' second term as the head of the Double Discovery Center. He served as its assistant director in 1985-90 and executive director in 1990-98 before leaving to become a consultant to non-profits in London. Since December 2004, he has been director of development at Kids Corporation in Newark.

Founded in 1965, the Double Discovery Center serves more than 1,000 low-income and first generation college-bound New York City youth in grades 7 through 12 each year. Through its two youth education programs, Talent Search and Upward Bound, students learn about colleges and careers, improve their academic work and participate in personal development activities.

Considered one of the best lawyers in Washington, D.C., Howard Gutman '77 will be leaving private practice and the United States to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Belgium under President Barack Obama '83.

Gutman is a partner with Williams & Connolly, where he focuses on commercial litigation. His clients have included Fortune 500 companies, sports teams and political candidates, and his work earned him a mention as one of "Washington's Top Lawyers" in Washingtonian magazine.

A graduate of Harvard Law, Gutman also has served as a special assistant to F.B.I. Director William Webster, a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart and a law clerk to Appeals Court Judge Irving Goldberg.

-Ethan Rouen '04J

This year's Alumni Reunion Weekend welcomed more College graduates back to campus than ever before. More than 1,100 Lions gathered on campus and across Manhattan beginning Wednesday, June 3, for five days of festivities and activities.

Adding to the revelry, 250 additional alumni and parents attended Dean's Day on Saturday.

A highlight was Saturday's Dean's Breakfast, at which Austin Quigley was feted during his final celebration in his 14-year tenure as Dean of the College, and at which the President's Cup was presented to Bernard Nussbaum '58.

Attendees and their guests packed the Public Intellectual Lecture series to see talks by Dr. Mehmet Oz, director of the Cardiovascular Institute at the Medical Center, R. Glenn Hubbard, Dean and Russell L. Carson Professor of Finance and Economics, and James Schamus, associate professor and CEO of Focus Features.

College alumni also ventured across the city for behind-the-scene tours of museums, boat cruises and Broadway shows.

Rain didn't discourage crowds from gathering on Friday, the first full day of events, and when the weather cleared on Saturday, partiers enjoyed the all-class wine tasting and class dinners, and ended the evening by filling the tent on College Walk, dancing late into the night at the Starlight Reception.

For class photos and a gallery of the weekend's activities, click here.

If your class year ends in a 5 or 10, save the date for Alumni Reunion Weekend 2010, which will take place from Thursday, June 3, to Sunday, June 6.

-Ethan Rouen '04J

In 2007, responding to needs expressed by students, a new plan for undergraduate advising at Columbia was developed. This plan addressed both resources and facilities, and while it would take several years to fully implement all of the pieces, providing adequate advising resources for undergraduates was a clear priority from the outset.

Several overarching goals factored into our decision to enhance undergraduate advising:

• To provide each student with more individualized guidance.
• To build a seamless advising experience that provides greater coordination between academic, preprofessional, career, and other advising resources across the schools.
• To establish a single, highly visible, easily accessible advising center in a central campus location.

By centralizing undergraduate advising and improving the overall structure, we will be able to provide a comprehensive advising program that addresses the diverse academic and personal needs of our students. The deans of Columbia College and The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science have played a pivotal role in guiding this reform of undergraduate advising. To ensure that we have the resources necessary to achieve these ambitious goals, alumni, parents and friends established the Austin E. Quigley Endowment for Student Success. Through their generosity, we will be able to enhance advising programs and services for undergraduates.

I am happy to announce two significant steps toward the achievement of our goals.

Appointment of Dean of Advising
Our commitment to student advising necessitates strong and visionary leadership. After a national search, I am pleased to announce that Monique Rinere will be the new Dean of Advising and Associate Dean of Student Affairs for Columbia College and The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. As Associate Dean of Harvard College, Dean Rinere oversaw the development of the Advising Programs Office which served 7,000 undergraduates. Under her leadership, Harvard's Advising Programs Office enhanced services for students by strengthening relationships with students, faculty and departments, developing a peer advising program, and creating innovative, web-based resources. I look forward to working with Dean Rinere and the expertise and leadership she will bring to the Center for Student Advising.

Creation of a Central Advising Center
The Center for Student Advising will be housed on the fourth floor of Lerner. Beginning this summer, the sixth floor of Lerner will be renovated to house the Dean of Student Affairs' suite, the Office of Financial Aid and Educational Financing, and the Office of Judicial Affairs and Community Standards. Once these offices have moved to the sixth floor early in the fall, we will begin planning for the expansion of the current Center for Student Advising. This expansion will provide a central physical space for student advising and is essential in providing students with streamlined, accessible resources.

CCSC and ESC have been important partners in our discussions about the enhancements to advising and I know they share my excitement as we begin this important phase of our development. Dean Quigley, Dean Navratil and I have had an opportunity to provide a more detailed update about the overall plan with both councils and have shared with them the architects' proposal for the sixth floor space. We will continue to communicate regularly with the councils as we proceed with our plans for the fourth floor. In addition, we will discuss with the councils the best use of the space that will eventually become available in the residence halls when the advising centers move to the fourth floor of Lerner.

Over the past three years, the commitment to enhancing student advising at Columbia has been shared by students, staff, the deans and alumni. The vision, evaluation, planning and resources that have gone into this have truly been a collaborative effort. Establishing one centralized location for the advising office and naming Dean Rinere as the head of that office are important steps toward honoring that commitment. I am thankful to everyone who has played an integral role in this effort and look forward to welcoming you to the new space.

Sincerely,

Kevin G. Shollenberger
Dean of Student Affairs
Columbia College/The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science

Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Student Life
Arts and Sciences
Columbia University

The Class of 2009 could barely contain itself as its members welcomed Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. '73, '76L to the podium as the keynote speaker for this year's Class Day, May 19.

Holder delivered a witty, inspiring speech that included reminiscences of his oddball freshman year roommates - he had two who eventually left campus - and jealousy of the current Carman Hall residents, who have air conditioning.

After sending students, families, alumni, faculty and staff into stitches, Holder struck a more serious tone, urging graduates to give back to their communities.

"Set your sights beyond the career that will offer the greatest financial reward to the one that will reward your soul," he said. "You must do your part to improve the world around you."

For the fifth year, the procession was followed by the Parade of Classes, with dozens of alumni marching with their class banners to welcome seniors into the alumni community.

Celebrating the 25th year of coeducation and the final year of Austin Quigley's role as Dean of the College, more than 900 seniors packed South Lawn on a perfect spring day to say goodbye to their undergraduate years.

On Wednesday, May 20, they will receive their diplomas at Commencement.

Ethan Rouen '04J