Home > Academics > Faculty Directory > Faculty Detail
SIPA Faculty
Michael Cowan
Adjunct Associate Professor of International and Public Affairs
mc526@columbia.edu
Biography:
Michael Cowan is a strategic communications professional and journalist with more than 20 years of experience, primarily in network news production and the non-profit sector. Currently, he is Director of Public Information at ASME, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, where he is responsible for the overall leadership and management of the Society's communications strategy and operations. Previous positions in the non-profit sector include Deputy Vice President for External Relations at the International Rescue Committee and Associate Director of Communications at the Rockefeller Foundation.
For nearly two decades prior to his work in the non-profit sector, Cowan worked as a journalist and producer for broadcast television, including positions at the "Today Show" at NBC News, and "Primetime Live" and "Nightline" at ABC News. From 1996-2005, he taught courses in broadcast journalism as a member of the adjunct faculty at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. Since 2000, as part of his work at the Columbia Journalism School, Cowan has been a Visiting Professor at the University of Barcelona. Additionally, Cowan has designed and conducted seminars, workshops and trainings for journalists in over a dozen countries, including Indonesia, Mozambique, Kenya, Bolivia and Venezuela. He received a B.A. cum laude in Latin American Studies from Yale University and an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University.
.