Leebron elected vice chair of AAU

Rice President David Leebron was elected vice chair of the Association of American Universities (AAU) Board of Directors Oct. 20 at the AAU’s semiannual meeting in Washington, D.C.

David Leebron

AAU is a nonprofit organization of 62 leading public and private research universities in the United States and Canada, including Rice. Founded in 1900 to advance the international standing of U.S. research universities, AAU now focuses on issues that are important to research-intensive universities, such as funding for research, research policy issues and graduate and undergraduate education. The association’s primary missions are to maintain the productive partnership between research universities and the U.S. government and to advance university research and higher education.

Leebron will work with newly elected board chair Lou Anna K. Simon, president of Michigan State University.

The 11-member AAU board maintains general oversight of the association, including proposing policy positions for consideration by the membership, approving budgets, working with the AAU president and Washington office staff to carry out the association’s agenda and playing a significant role in determining the organization’s direction during the coming year.