Columbia University was founded in 1754 as King’s College by royal charter of King George II of England. It is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York and the fifth oldest in the United States. After residing at two locations for nearly a century and a half, the University moved to Morningside Heights in 1897.
Columbia is one of the top academic and research institutions in the world, encompassing 17 schools with more than 25,000 students and 2,000 international faculty. Eighty Columbians—alumni, faculty, researchers, and administrators—have won Nobel Prizes. Furthermore, eight current faculty members are Nobel laureates in medicine, economics, physics, and literature. Columbians daily continue to conduct path breaking research in medicine, science, law, business, the arts, and the humanities.
The University’s Mission Statement: “Columbia University is one of the world’s most important centers of research and at the same time a distinctive and distinguished learning environment for undergraduates and graduate students in many scholarly and professional fields. The University recognizes the importance of its location in New York City and seeks to link its research and teaching to the vast resources of a great metropolis. It seeks to attract a diverse and international faculty and student body, to support research and teaching on global issues, and to create academic relationships with many countries and regions. It expects all areas of the university to advance knowledge and learning at the highest level and to convey the products of its efforts to the world.”
213 Low Library
2960 Broadway
New York, NY 10027
Telephone: 212-854-4900
Website: columbia.edu
Columbia University News

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik
Dear fellow members of the Columbia community, Our University is committed to four core principles, which underpin all of our work and our shared values

Statement From David Greenwald, Claire Shipman, Minouche Shafik, and Angela Olinto
Dear fellow members of the Columbia Community, Throughout this very challenging year, we have adhered to a simple goal: to continue our academic mission while

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik
Dear Members of the Columbia Community, I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely
Columbia University Events
Medicine Grand Rounds with Leonardo V Riella


Venue
- NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
- 622 W. 168 St., New York, NY 10032
-
Website
https://www.nyp.org/
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
Leslie Baer, MD ’63 Memorial Lecture
Innovations in Transplantation: Immune Regulation and Genetically Engineered Pigs to Overcome Organ Shortage
Leonardo V. Riella, MD PhD
Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation
Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Lecture 12:00-1:00 pm
Join via Zoom: https://forms.gle/SP41G15Q4JBxgz9C7
Medicine Grand Rounds with Leonardo V Riella

Leslie Baer, MD ’63 Memorial Lecture
Innovations in Transplantation: Immune Regulation and Genetically Engineered Pigs to Overcome Organ Shortage
Leonardo V. Riella, MD PhD
Medical Director of Kidney Transplantation
Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Lecture 12:00-1:00 pm
Aging Seminar: Experience Corps: Lessons for building social capital
Online
SPRING 2025 SEMINARS OF THE ROBERT N. BUTLER COLUMBIA AGING CENTER | Assets of Aging: A Series on the Capabilities that Accrue with Longer Lives
Join us for the Columbia Aging Center’s ONLINE seminar, one in a series focusing on the assets of aging and the capabilities that accrue with longer lives. Please register to attend via Zoom on May 14, 2025. Details and registration link below.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2025, 12:30PM-1:30PM ET
Experience Corps as a model for structural social capital for an aging society
Linda P. Fried, MD, MPH
Director
Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center
Dean & DeLamar Professor
Columbia Mailman School of Public Health
Virtual Seminar
Location: Zoom
Register to attend via Zoom at: https://columbiacuimc.zoom.us/meeting/register/F5RAs9AJTueV27a88CMJdA
Experience Corps is a community-based senior volunteer program that leverages the skills and experiences of older adults to improve the academic success of children in elementary schools by providing one-on-one or small group tutoring, with the goal of improving the students’ reading skills and building their social-emotional learning abilities.
From Freeze to Evisceration of U.S. Foreign Aid Webinar
Online
More than 90 days ago, a sweeping freeze on U.S. foreign aid was implemented—initially described as a temporary review to align funding with evolving foreign policy goals. Today, that freeze has effectively become indefinite. Its ripple effects are being felt across the globe, disrupting health systems, humanitarian assistance, and critical health and development programs—particularly those serving people living in poverty and vulnerable communities. We have been tracking the impacts of this cut on global health programs.
This webinar will present new global survey data and in-depth country analyses from Colombia, Kenya, and Nepal—nations directly impacted by the aid suspension. Speakers will share both sector-wide impacts and on-the-ground realities: essential health services interrupted, communities most affected, and the growing risks to marginalized populations and global health systems. Hosted by the Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health at Columbia University, in collaboration with CREHPA, HIAS, and policy/strategy group, this timely global webinar brings together researchers, frontline practitioners, policymakers, and advocates.
Together, we’ll examine the far-reaching consequences of U.S. aid cuts and explore strategies to catalyze a coordinated, cross-sectoral response to protect and advance global health gains.
Natalie Exum, PhD from Johns Hopkins BSPH


Venue
- Allan Rosenfield Building
- 722 W. 168 St., New York, NY 10032
Category
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
Participant of FRESH – Future Researchers in Environmental Science and Health, a pilot exchange program across Northeast/MidAtlantic P30 Centers. The FRESH exchange program was proposed and coordinated by the Rutgers Center for Environmental Exposures and Disease.
Title: Reducing Water-Related Health Inequities Using Community-Engaged Approaches
Abstract: Community concerns surrounding the safety of drinking from aging water systems is increasingly perceived as a health risk in low-income populations. Public water systems that fail to be in compliance with federal regulations under the Safe Drinking Water Act often impact communities of color at higher rates and validates the question “is the water safe to drink from my tap?”. These disparities necessitate a community-engaged approach to investigate the environmental exposures from drinking water that are associated with adverse health outcomes. This seminar will discuss the public health challenges with aging drinking water infrastructure in Baltimore City and the lack of access to piped water on the Navajo Nation.
Baccalaureate Service


Venue
- Columbia University – St. Paul's Chapel
- 1160 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10027
Category
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
Congratulations Class of 2025!
All undergraduate degree candidates and their family and friends are invited to attend the annual Baccalaureate Service.
The Baccalaureate Service is a multifaith celebration of undergraduate commencement. Service highlights include musical performances, reflections, and readings by students from diverse faith traditions. The ceremony features a procession that includes undergraduate degree candidates from Columbia College, The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, the School of General Studies, and Barnard College. Learn more about the history of the Baccalaureate Service and this year’s student participants.
Please register to participate. Undergraduate students eligible for graduation from the four undergraduate schools are able to register themselves and their guests for the service.
All undergraduates who particpate in the Baccalaureate Service will recieve a commemorative pin. Register to attend the service and recieve the pin below!
Graduates can register for the service here.
For any questions regarding the Baccalaureate Service, please reach out to the Office of Religious Life at religiouslife@columbia.edu or the University Ceremonies Office at commencement@columbia.edu.
Columbia University is committed to ensuring that all Commencement activities are accessible to all graduates and guests. If you need any accommodations, please contact Disability Services. Students with requests for information about accessibility or accommodations for the Baccalaureate Service should contact Disability Services at disability@columbia.edu or 212-854-2388.
Insights from Successful Marburg Virus Outbreak Response
Online
On May 20, 2025, ICAP will present the Grand Rounds — Insights from Successful Marburg Virus Outbreak Response.
Marburg virus disease (MVD) is a severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fever that is clinically similar to the Ebola virus disease. In fall 2024, Rwanda experienced the third-largest recorded MVD outbreak, with 66 reported cases and 15 deaths, the majority of which were among healthcare workers. In response, Rwanda’s Ministry of Health launched a comprehensive national program that included widespread public health awareness campaigns, promotion of hygiene practices, strict monitoring of transmissions, isolation of potential cases, effective treatment protocols for confirmed cases, and the distribution of investigational vaccines and therapeutics. The Ministry of Health declared the outbreak over by December 2024.
Although there are currently no licensed vaccines or treatments for MVD, several candidate vaccines are in development, and some have entered clinical trials.
Experts from the Rwanda Biomedical Centre and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) will share experiences and lessons learned from managing the MVD outbreak in Rwanda and the development of a candidate vaccine.
Presenters
Mark Feinberg, MD, PhD, CEO of IAVI
Mark Feinberg is president and CEO of IAVI, where he leads a global team working to advance the development of vaccines and other biomedical innovations to protect against infection with HIV, tuberculosis, emerging viruses and other public health threats that disproportionately impact people living in low-income countries. Prior to joining IAVI in 2015, Feinberg served as chief public health and science officer with Merck Vaccines. In this role, he helped advance the development and global availability of vaccines against rotavirus, human papillomavirus, and other infectious diseases. He also led a range of research initiatives to address unmet health needs in low-income countries including the coordination of a private-public partnership to expedite the development of an efficacious Ebola Zaire vaccine. Previously, Feinberg spent more than 20 years exploring HIV/AIDS pathogenesis, treatment, and prevention research and the biology of emerging diseases in both academia and government.
Edson Rwagasore, MD, Head of Public Health Surveillance and Emergency Response, Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC)
Edson Rwagasore is a public health physician and epidemiologist, currently serving as the head of public health surveillance and emergency response at the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC). In this role, he leads Rwanda’s national surveillance systems, outbreak investigations, and emergency health responses to protect public health. He is also the program director for the Rwanda Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP), where he builds the capacity of the country’s next generation of epidemiologists. Rwagasore played a key role as the lead for surveillance during Rwanda’s successful response to the 2024 Marburg virus disease outbreak, coordinating case detection, contact tracing, laboratory surveillance, and real-time data analysis to rapidly contain the epidemic.
Webinar – Health in the Era of Social Media
Online
Join Columbia University Department of Pediatrics experts alongside experts from the Mailman School of Public Health and the Graduate School of Journalism, as we discuss how the practice of medicine and health communications is changing in the era of social media and a changing media landscape.
Experts will discuss:
- Where families seek information and how it impacts the health of individuals, communities, and countries.
- How individual physicians and public health systems can meet the challenges and opportunities of the current moment.
- Best practices for both seeking and sharing information
Panelists include:
Dr. Melissa Stockwell, MD, MPH
Pediatrician, Chief, Division of Child and Adolescent Health
Professor of Pediatrics, Population and Family Health
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Dr. Randi Epstein, MD, MPH
Medical Author and Freelance Journalist
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Journalism,
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Dr. Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL
Global Health Practitioner, Senior Lecturer
Editor-in-Chief, the Journal of Communication in Healthcare.
Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
University Commencement


Venue
- Columbia University – Low Plaza
- 535 W. 116 St., New York, NY 10027
Category
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
Congratulations to the Class of 2025! The Columbia University Commencement ceremony of the 271st academic year will take place on Wednesday, May 21, at 10:30 a.m. (EDT) on the Morningside Campus. All eligible October 2024 graduates and February, May and June 2025 degree candidates from all schools and colleges affiliated with Columbia University are encouraged to participate in the celebration. Eligible graduates will receive communications throughout the spring.
Family, friends and community members who are unable to join us on campus for the ceremony are encouraged to tune in to the celebration through our live webcast. An archived video of the ceremony will be available for viewing shortly after.
For more information on registration and additional updates on this year’s ceremony, please visit the Commencement website.
Questions? Check out our FAQ’s or contact the University Ceremonies Office at commencement@columbia.edu.
Medicine Grand Rounds with Arthur L Caplan

How Best Can the War Against Science be Fought
Arthur L. Caplan, PhD
Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor of Bioethics, Department of Population Health
Founding Head, Division of Medical Ethics
NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Lecture 12:00-1:00 pm
Dermatology SPOTme Skin Cancer Screening


Venue
- Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
- 1130 St. Nicholas Ave., New York, NY 10032
-
Website
https://www.cancer.columbia.edu/
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
The Department of Dermatology at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia University Irving Medical Center will offer a free screening that could save your life.
No appointment is needed. First come, first served based on availability.
The SPOTme skin cancer screening program is part of the American Academy of Dermatology’s SPOT Skin Cancer initiative, a campaign to create a world without skin cancer through public awareness, community outreach programs and services, and advocacy promoting skin cancer prevention, detection, and care. Since 1985, dermatologists have conducted more than 2.9 million free skin cancer checks and detected more than 293,000 suspicious lesions, including more than 33,700 suspected melanoma. When caught early, skin cancer is highly treatable.
HICCC Clinical Trials Day Event 2025


Venue
- College of Physicians and Surgeons
- 630 W. 168 St., New York, NY 10032
TICKETS/REGISTER LINK
About the Event:
This half-day symposium aims to:
- Raise awareness about clinical trials and emphasize the critical importance of representation.
- Educate attendees on how improving clinical research practices can positively transform the lives of individuals and communities worldwide.
The event will feature guest speakers who are experts in the field, as well as engaging panel discussions representing different roles and departments.
Together, they will share unique perspectives on advancing representation in clinical trials and ensuring access for all!
Topics:
- Clinical Research 101 & Navigation
- Community Outreach & Engagement
- Women in Clinical Trials
- Patient Advocate Presentation
- Voices in Clinical Trials Panel
- And more!