Mariet Westermann Named Vice Chancellor of NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU President Andrew Hamilton announced the appointment of Mariet Westermann -- Executive Vice President of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, former provost of NYU Abu Dhabi, former director of NYU's Institute of Fine Arts, and art historian -- as Vice Chancellor of NYU Abu Dhabi, effective August 1, 2019.

Her selection follows a 10-month long international search that considered many outstanding candidates from around the world.

“We are thrilled by the appointment of Mariet Westermann,” President Hamilton said. “In choosing a new Vice Chancellor, we sought someone who would not only be a leader capable of taking NYU Abu Dhabi into its next stage, but who would also contribute to NYU's leadership globally and be a real presence in the cultural and intellectual life of Abu Dhabi.”

“Mariet Westermann personifies values that we cherish here in Shanghai: analytic precision, intellectual integrity, cosmopolitanism, and humanism.” NYU Shanghai Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Lehman said. “Throughout her distinguished career she has proven her ability to infuse those values into every institution in which she has played a leadership role. We are very fortunate that she has agreed to serve as the next leader of NYU Abu Dhabi and I very much look forward to working with her.”

Dr. Westermann said, “It is a great honor and calling to serve as NYU Abu Dhabi’s Vice Chancellor. In a brief nine years, NYU Abu Dhabi has become a unique, flourishing institution of higher education: in and of New York University.”

In addition to being named to the Vice Chancellorship, Westerman will be appointed a Professor of Arts and Humanities at NYU Abu Dhabi.

In 2002, Dr. Westermann was on the faculty at NYU, first as director of the Institute of Fine Arts and then as the first provost of NYU Abu Dhabi, where she hired the startup team and initial faculty, helped shape the curriculum and launch the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute, and developed warm relationships with the Abu Dhabi community.

Since 2010, she has been at the Mellon Foundation, and has been the executive vice president for programs and research since 2016. In that role, she has launched initiatives that study and promote the value of the humanities and the liberal arts, strengthen community colleges, encourage graduate education reform, renew preservation of cultural heritage around the world, and support scholars and artists at risk.

Mariet Westermann's principal area of scholarly interest is the art of the Netherlands, her native country. She is widely published in the field, and is currently preparing an exhibition and book on the resonance of the Garden of Eden in the history, theology, and art of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.