Annelise Riles will serve as the new executive director of the Buffett Institute for Global Studies, Provost Jonathan Holloway announced in a Tuesday email to faculty and students.

Riles currently works as a Cornell University professor and will serve as the associate provost for global affairs when she comes to NU, the email said. She will also join Pritzker School of Law as a tenured law professor, where she previously served as an assistant professor from 1997 to 2002. Riles will officially began at NU September 1.

A new search for an executive director of the institute began in December after the former director, Bruce Carruthers announced he was taking a sabbatical. It was the first search for the position since 2016, when Karl Eikenberry — former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan — was appointed, but ultimately did not fill the position following opposition from students and faculty.

Holloway recognized SESP Dean David Figlio, who led the faculty search committee for the position, and Carruthers in the email for their commitment to “advancing Northwestern’s global ambitions.”

“Professor Carruthers did a masterful job in leading the Institute in its earliest days, and he leaves Buffett in excellent shape as he steps down this summer to take a well-earned leave,” Holloway said.

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