NYC Gazette

The City University of New York (CUNY) has appointed Joshua C. Brumberg as president of the CUNY Graduate Center, solidifying a position he has held on an interim basis since October 2023. Brumberg, a neurobiologist with a 22-year tenure at CUNY as a faculty member, dean, and researcher, will lead the University's graduate education center. The appointment was approved by CUNY’s Board of Trustees.

“Dr. Brumberg has played a key role in expanding CUNY’s research enterprise over the past several years,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “A scientist at heart, he is widely admired for his dedication to STEM education and commitment to CUNY’s missions of advancing equity and opportunity. Dr. Brumberg is the right person at the right time to lead the Graduate Center into the future.”

The Chancellor recommended Brumberg as the permanent leader after consulting with Graduate Center faculty, students, staff, foundation board members, and administrators who expressed unanimous support.

As interim leader, Brumberg has attracted nearly $90 million in external funding for research and educational programming. Notable contributions during this period include $75 million from the Simons Foundation to establish CUNY as a hub for computational science and support its participation in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Empire AI initiative; and $10 million from the Leon Levy Foundation to endow the Leon Levy Center for Biography.

Brumberg previously served as dean for the sciences at the Graduate Center for seven years, overseeing research operations along with 11 STEM doctoral programs and five master’s programs created during his tenure. He also secured funding for diversity programs in laboratory sciences and gender equity in mathematics.

“It is an honor to serve the Graduate Center and The City University of New York, and I am humbled by the confidence the Chancellor and the CUNY trustees have placed in me to lead this great public graduate school,” said Brumberg. “During my time as interim president, we have made significant strides in attracting support from donors and funders. I look forward to continuing these efforts and working with our remarkable faculty and students to build on the Graduate Center’s record of excellence in research and teaching.”

Brumberg earned his Ph.D. in neurobiology from the University of Pittsburgh and completed postdoctoral fellowships at Yale University and Columbia University. He joined Queens College's Department of Psychology faculty in 2002, establishing his own laboratory while holding appointments in biology, psychology, and cognitive neuroscience programs at the Graduate Center.

Following his father's footsteps—Professor Emeritus Stephan Brumberg—who served on Brooklyn College's faculties among other roles within CUNY's Central Office, Joshua Brumberg has devoted his career to CUNY.

As a neurobiologist, Brumberg uses behavioral, physiological, and anatomical methods to study how environmental experience impacts cortical circuit development in the brain. He has published over 60 papers and received multiple grants from both National Science Foundation (NSF)and National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Chancellor Matos Rodríguez installed Brumberg as one of 18 permanent campus leaders during his five-year tenure—a diverse group including ten women, eleven leaders of color, alongside first college presidents of Asian descent within CUNY history.

The CUNY Graduate Center stands among leading Ph.D.-granting institutions nationwide—educating over 3,200 students across more than thirty doctoral programs alongside growing master's offerings—in Midtown Manhattan campus coupled with upper Manhattan's science center; hosting numerous centers/institutes spearheading groundbreaking research endeavors backed by esteemed faculty collaborations across wider university network bolstering educational landscape substantially enriched by ongoing strategic initiatives/partnerships defining integral aspects driving sustained progress pivotal towards fostering academic/professional growth benefiting broader societal constructs regionally/nationally/globally ultimately resonating through transformative impact engendered via comprehensive outreach reinforcing foundational principles guiding institutional vision persistently actualized aligning collective aspirations centered around inclusive advancement fostering equitable opportunities 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aspirational objectives concertedly aligned intrinsic core values fundamentally characterizing substantive embodiment quintessentially epitomizing preeminent distinction undeniably recognized universally resoundingly reaffirmed consistently acknowledged incontrovertibly establishing indelible imprint undeniably accentuating integral prominence emphatically underscoring prominent role affirmatively positioned substantially augmenting institutional prominence comprehensively integrating multifaceted dimensions synergistically converging commonalities seamlessly reinforcing cohesive framework inclusively fostering comprehensive growth undoubtedly substantiating underlying principles cohesively embodying shared vision compellingly articulated persuasively reflective uniquely emblematic distinctly representing quintessential embodiment preeminent institution revered universally celebrated reflecting exceptional stature definitively recognized globally consistently affirmed unreservedly reiterating definitive resonance ubiquitously reverberative profoundly permeative extensively influencing diverse spheres fundamentally underpinning extensive breadth cumulatively consolidating broad-based momentum substantiv ###