Mark Kennedy

WISC Director, DRI Senior Fellow

Bio

As a Senior Fellow at NYU’s Development Research Institute and Founding Director of the Wahba Initiative for Strategic Competition, Mark Kennedy (U.S. Congress, 2001-07 MN) defines paths to strengthening the alliances, technology, and economic foundations of America’s global leadership.

As President Emeritus of the University of Colorado and past President of the University of North Dakota, Kennedy highlights the central role of talent and technology in economic development and geopolitical competition.

As an appointed Civic Leader supporting the Secretary of  the Air Force and a Senior Fellow at CNA – Center for Naval Analyses, Kennedy champions the grand strategy and military needed to deter aggression.

Mark applies experiences as a first-generation college graduate, presidentially appointed member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, member of the Council on Foreign Relations, member of the Boston Global Forum’s Board of Thinkers, and Chairman Emeritus of the Economic Club of Minnesota.

Kennedy has engaged wide cross-sections of society in over 45 countries, including refugee camps, war zones, 60+ military bases and three aircraft carriers at sea.
Education

• M.B.A. with Distinction, University of Michigan Ross School of Business
• B.S., St. John’s University (MN)
• Semester abroad: Rotterdam School of Management & Delft University of Technology (Netherlands)
• Executive programs: Harvard Business School, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Author: Shapeholders: Business Success in the Age of Activism (Columbia University Press)
• Taught 3,000+ students in 20 countries; designed 17 courses; led global residencies on five continents