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GATHERED AROUND ALMA MATER: The Class of 2029 was officially welcomed at Convocation on Aug. 24. Among the speakers were Shnayjaah Jeanty ’27, student leader coordinator for the New Student Orientation Program (center), who offered words of encouragement to the newest Columbians. Seated, left to right: Engineering Dean Shih-Fu Chang; College Dean Josef Sorett; Acting President Claire Shipman ’86, SIPA’94; and Provost Angela V. Olinto.
DIANE BONDAREFF
New Deans
Kamala C. Kiem has been appointed dean of Undergraduate Student Life for Columbia College and Columbia Engineering, and Jonathon S. Kahn GSAS’03 has become senior associate dean of community and culture.

Kamala C. Kiem
Kiem received her Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Massachusetts Boston and holds master’s degrees in student affairs administration (Michigan State University) and social justice education (UMass Amherst).

Jonathon S. Kahn GSAS’03
KARL RABE / VASSAR COLLEGE
Kahn spent 20 years as a professor of religion, Africana and American studies at Vassar, where he also held leadership roles as director of engaged pluralism and special adviser on inclusion and engaged pluralism.
In the 2024–25 academic year, he returned to Columbia to co-lead the Practices in Community Building Fellowship, offered through the Undergraduate Community Initiative.
University Professor
Farah Jasmine Griffin, the William B. Ransford Professor of English and Comparative Literature and of African American Studies, has been appointed University Professor, the highest academic distinction Columbia confers on its own faculty.
Griffin was the inaugural chair of the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies. She earned her B.A. in history and literature from Harvard and her Ph.D. in American studies from Yale. She is the author or editor of eight books, including most recently Read Until You Understand: The Profound Wisdom of Black Life and Literature. She has also extended her scholarship into the world of performance; in collaboration with composer and pianist Geri Allen, she wrote and staged two musical works celebrating the legacy of Black women in jazz.
Griffin is also a 2021 Guggenheim Fellow and Mellon Foundation Scholar in Residence.
As Provost Angela V. Olinto observed, Griffin “is a visionary and pioneering scholar and an outstanding member of our Columbia community. Her work has impacted multiple fields and areas of focus and exemplifies the sort of pathbreaking, interdisciplinary scholarship that we seek to honor in our University Professors.”
Hamilton Medal

Andrew F. “Andy” Barth ’83, BUS’85
TAMARA LEIGH PHOTOGRAPHY
The Hamilton Medal is the highest honor awarded to a member of the Columbia College community and recognizes distinguished service to the College and accomplishment in any field of endeavor.
“Along with his professional accomplishments, Andy has distinguished himself through steadfast support of education, athletics and the arts — particularly here at Columbia, where his leadership and generosity have had a transformative impact on the lives of so many,” says Dean Josef Sorett. “He sets an example of service and civic responsibility that is truly an inspiration to us all.”
The 77th annual Alexander Hamilton Award Dinner will take place on Thursday, Nov. 20, in Low Rotunda.
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