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Merryl H. Tisch

Term expired February 15, 2024.

MERRYL H. TISCH; term expired February 15, 2024, continues to hold office until she is reappointed or until a successor is appointed.  Dr. Merryl H. Tisch is one of the nation's leading voices on education. She was appointed Chair of the State University of New York in 2019, after serving as Vice-Chair since 2018.  From 2009 to 2016, Dr. Tisch served as Chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents, New York State’s governing body for education.  Prior to serving as its Chancellor, Dr. Tisch was a member of the Board of Regents for twenty years and then held the position of Vice Chancellor from 2007 to 2009. While leading the Board of Regents, Dr. Tisch was responsible for setting the state’s education policy and overseeing both public and private education throughout New York. Her policies were informed by years of experience in the fields of education, community service, and philanthropy. Dr. Tisch currently holds a number of influential philanthropic and civic positions in New York and beyond.  She sits on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and acts as the Met’s representative on the Public Design Commission, and she also serves as the Chair of the Rhodes Scholarship District Selection Committee.  While at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Dr. Tisch endowed a Curator at Large position that has significantly impacted the museum’s ability to offer broader, more inclusive perspectives to exhibitions, collections, and programming, including the recently acclaimed exhibition “the Harlem Renaissance” curated by Denise Murrell.   Additionally, she serves as a Trustee of Barnard College. She sits on the executive committees of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy and the Citizens Budget Commission. Dr. Tisch was a member of the NYC Charter Revision Commission and is Chair Emeritus of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, a leading social services agency.  In 2017, alongside her husband James S. Tisch, Dr. Tisch endowed a chair to develop the Educational Director for the New York Public Library System. This initiative was designed to revolutionize the library's educational programs, with a particular focus on literacy and digital equity. It aimed to empower the library to rethink, transform, and broaden its educational outreach.  In 2008, Dr. Tisch and her husband endowed the Tisch Cancer Institute at the Mt. Sinai Medical Center. In 2021, furthering their commitment to health and wellness, the Tisches increased their gift to $100 million to help build the Tisch Cancer Hospital at Mt. Sinai.  This additional gift will facilitate the construction of a cutting-edge cancer hospital and is set to broaden access to innovative therapies, diagnostics, and clinical trials.  Dr. Tisch earned a B.A. from Barnard College, an M.A. in Education from New York University, and received an Ed.D from Teacher’s College, Columbia University.  She and her husband have three children who are married and live in New York City.