Office of the Provost

An administrative post below University President. The Provost is in charge of academic matters, and serves as the chief academic officer of the university. All matters relating to faculty hiring, retention, compensation, tenure are the responsibility of the Provost, as are curricular matters. The Provost's counterpart, who handles operational and administrative concerns of the university, is the Senior Executive Vice President, a post currently held by Robert Kasdin.

History

The Provostship was created in 1811 and initially given to John Mitchell Mason, alumnus (CC 1789) and first Provost of Columbia College. Mason was widely favoured for the Presidency, following the office's vacancy that year. Unfortunately, he had the ill fortune to be a Presbyterian, and so he was de facto disqualified. The office went instead to William T. Harris, and Mason was given the newly-created position of Provost. In recognition of their relative importance and qualification, Mason received $3400 / year as Provost while Harris received $500 / year as President. When Mason stepped down in 1816, the office was abolished, not to be revived again until 1912, when William H. Carpenter became Provost under President Nicholas Murray Butler.

List of Provosts

• John Mitchell Mason (1811 - 1816)
• William H. Carpenter (1912 - ?)
• William Theodore de Bary (1971 - 1978)
• Alan Brinkley ( ? - today )