For Immediate Release: October 14, 2022
Contact: Arianna Morgan | amorgan@skdknick.com| 405-543-5136

New York, NY—Today, the Board of Trustees of Teachers College, Columbia University, announced that Leslie Morse Nelson, a dedicated member of the Teachers College Board of Trustees since 2010, and vice chair since 2016, has been elected to serve as the new chair of the board beginning on October 13, 2022. Nelson succeeds William “Bill” Dodge Rueckert, who joined the Board in 1997, served as co-chair beginning in 2003, and was named chair in 2017.

“Serving as a TC trustee has been immensely fulfilling,” says Teachers College Board Chair Leslie Morse Nelson. “My family has always cared deeply and personally about the work of Teachers College, particularly the critical role of preparing teachers. I am honored to now serve as chair, and I have already learned so much working alongside Bill. I am eager to continue to collaborate with him, our trustee colleagues, and President Bailey to further strengthen this dynamic institution that is so vital to meeting the challenges of our time.”

Nelson has brought a keen and thoughtful understanding of institutional needs to her years of service on Teachers College’s board. She was vice chair, alongside Rueckert, on the College’s successful “Where the Future Comes First” campaign, helping to raise $300 million to fund student scholarships and create multidisciplinary centers, academic programs, and initiatives. She spearheaded the School-Based Mental Health Collaboration, an innovative mental health partnership to provide on-site mental health support for students in underserved New York City public schools. And she has worked to strengthen TC’s fundraising, outreach, and operations through service on the Audit, Compensation, Development, Executive, Strategic Innovation, and 125th Anniversary Gala Committees, as well as the Committee on Trustees and as a Co-Chair of the School Partnerships Committee.

Alongside her work with the College, Nelson has served as a member of numerous boards, including Girls Quest, Inc., which provides girls from low-income families with year-round enrichment programs; the Juilliard Council, an advisory board of the Juilliard School; the boards of trustees of the Collegiate and Chapin Schools; and, currently, the board of trustees of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Education Committee of the board of WNET.

“Teachers College is unrivaled as a school of education in its breadth and expertise and in its legacy of improving human lives,” said Teachers College Board Chair Emeritus William Dodge Rueckert. “As my Great Aunt Grace Dodge said in referring to her founding of the College, ‘We have to lay the foundation, not for one year or two years, but for 50 years.’ This has been my objective as board chair, and I am so pleased that the board will now have a capable, committed leader in Leslie Nelson. I look forward to our continued collaborations.”

Rueckert has carried on an unparalleled family legacy during his twenty-five years of service on the board, including five as chair and nearly twenty as co-chair. TC’s founder, Grace Hoadley Dodge, was Rueckert’s great aunt and his grandfather, Cleveland E. Dodge, served on the Board for 67 years, including 32 as chair. Rueckert will continue to serve as an active board member and Chair Emeritus.

Rueckert’s tenure as chair was defined by his dedication to TC’s financial health and future vitality. He played an instrumental role in leading two successful capital campaigns. During the almost two decades Rueckert served as chair and co-chair, the College’s endowment nearly tripled to reach a total of approximately $450 million. He also secured a $10 million gift from the late philanthropist Abby O’Neill in 2011 to establish the Abby M. O’Neill Endowed Fellowship Program and support campus facilities. In addition, he helped to recruit two Teachers College presidents, and the College created dynamic facilities under his leadership, including the Smith Learning Center and Cowin Auditorium.

“Bill has been a fearless leader, trusted advisor, and generous supporter of the College during his years of steadfast service to the Board,” said Teachers College President Thomas Bailey. “I am incredibly grateful for his deep commitment to TC, and, although he is stepping down as Chair, I am pleased that he will continue to serve as an active member of the Board and as Chair Emeritus. We are fortunate that the reins have been handed to Leslie Nelson. Leslie's energy, enthusiasm, and commitment to TC are undeniable, and I am so thankful for the many thoughtful contributions she has made to the College as a trustee over the past 12 years. I look forward to continuing to work with her to build on our strengths for years to come.”

Nelson will begin her role as Board Chair immediately, following the legacy of her mother — Enid “Dinny” Morse, who served on Teachers College’s Board of Trustees from 1988 through 2001 and as the Board’s Co-Chair for three years. Nelson and her siblings established the Enid W. Morse Fellowship for Teaching in the Arts in honor of their mother, and with her brothers, she helped create Teaching Artists @TC, a certificate program for working artists to build classroom skills. Following her retirement from a twenty-year career in interior design in 2012, Nelson worked as a teaching assistant in a NYC public elementary school and, for the last five years, has been a substitute teacher with the NYC Department of Education.

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About Teachers College

Founded in 1887, Teachers College, Columbia University, the first and largest graduate school of education in the United States, is perennially ranked among the nation’s best. Teachers College’s mission is to create a smarter, healthier, and more equitable and peaceful world. Teachers College engages in research and prepares professionals in its three main areas of expertise—education, health and psychology—to work with public and private entities in local, national and global communities and inform public policy. Students choose from nearly 150 academic programs to earn graduate degrees, which are conferred by Columbia University. While it is closely affiliated with Columbia University and collaborates with it on many programs, the College is an independent, autonomous institution with a separate, independent governing board, president, and financial endowment.