Joseph Duffey

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Dr. Joseph Duffey, the former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (1977-1982), and former assistant Secretary of State for education and cultural affairs, served as director of the United States Information Agency from 1993 to 1999. Before that, he was president of American University (1991-1993) and chancellor of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (1982-1991). While he was chancellor at Amherst, he also served as president of the four-campus UMASS system. In 1970, he won the Democratic nomination for the a Senate seat from Connecticut, but he finished second in a three-way race to Lowell Weicker. The incumbent in that race, Thomas J. Dodd, was the father of current Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd.

In 1978 and 1980, Duffey was a delegate to the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) meetings in Paris and Belgrade. In 1991, he was joint head of the U.S. Delegation observing national elections in Ethiopia.

Dr. Joseph Duffey, who has written extensively on issues relating to higher education and social and economic policy, has held teaching and fellowship positions at Yale University and Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, respectively, and has been a lecturer at several universities around the country. He holds 14 honorary degrees from American colleges and universities and in 1993 was awarded the honorary Doctor of Letter by Ritsumeikan University in Japan. In 1980, he was named Commander of the Order of the Crown by the King of Belgium. He has been a member of the Council on Foreign Relations since 1979.

His wife is Anne Wexler, one of the top 10 corporate lobbyists in the US.

Preceded by Richard E. Berendzen

President, American University 1991-1994

Succeeded by Benjamin Ladner