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Former Clinton Economist Appointed Fletcher's New Academic Dean
By Terry Ann Knopf
"We have a new Dean [of Fletcher, Stephen W. Bosworth] and a new President [of Tufts, Lawrence Bacow] mused Lisa Lynch, the William L. Clayton Professor of International Economic Affairs, who becomes The Fletcher School's new academic dean, effective Sept. 1. "It's terrific," she said. "We're all starting together a new phase of our school and our university, more generally."
Dean Bosworth said he looked forward to working with Lynch who brings "valuable academic and practical experience to the position." The dean also had kind words for Joel P. Trachtman, a professor of international law who had held the position for the past three years, citing his "dedicated, untiring, and indeed exceptional service."
Lynch said her "primary focus" as academic dean will be to maintain and strengthen Fletcher's academic programs and environment. Indeed, she will be involved in a variety of activities, including curriculum, tenure and promotion, faculty hiring and working with the new student council.
While carrying a reduced teaching load, students will be pleased to know that Lynch will be teaching during the academic year. In 1998, the was voted Fletcher's most popular teacher.
"This is a school that's not very hierarchical," she said, adding: "I'm more of a point person for discussion. We strive to work for consensus."
Lynch is a graduate of Wellesley College and holds a Master's degree and PhD in economics from the London School of Economics. She has written extensively on labor and workforce training issues, including Opportunity Knocks: Training the Commonwealth’s Workers for the New (co-author, 2000); Training and the Private Sector: International Comparisons (1994); and, Strategies for Workplace Training (1993). Her articles have also appeared in the Review of Economics and Statistics, Industrial and Labor Relations Review, American Economic Review and Economics Journal.
In addition, she has been cited or quoted in many newspapers and periodicals, including The New York Times, The Boston Globe and Business Week. She has also appeared on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.
From 1995-97, Lynch was the chief economist for the U.S. Department of Labor, in which she worked for U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich. She has also been a Visiting Distinguished Fellow at the Centre for Economic Performance, London School of Economics. Before coming to Fletcher, Lynch taught at The Sloan School of Management at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ohio State University, and the University of Bristol.
Giving new meaning to the notion that "it's all in the family," Lynch is married to Fabio Schiantarelli, an economics professor at Boston College. "We never stop debating issues," she jokes. The two have 6-year-old child named Julia.
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