Jonathan Alger

Jonathan Alger is the inaugural America 250 Fellow for the American Council on Education and American Association of Colleges & Universities (AAC&U), where he is leading a national initiative on civic education and engagement across the entire higher education sector. He is the past president of James Madison University and American University, where he developed transformative strategic plans focused on engaged learning and civic and community engagement.

President Alger has provided leadership for many higher education organizations and has chaired the boards of AAC&U, Campus Compact, and the National Association of College and University Attorneys. He is a member of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, previously served on the NCAA Division I Board of DIrectors and Infractions Appeals Committee, and is on an athletics advisory council for the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. He is a strong proponent of the educational value of athletics and has worked with faculty nationally on this issue.

Alger previously served in legal roles at Rutgers, the University of Michigan, the American Association of University Professors, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, and a major internatinoal law firm. He is a graduate of Swarthmore College and Harvard Law School and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.