By Donald Gilpin

Alexandra Day
(Photo by Kevin Birch)

The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) has created a new administrative position to “enhance and expand collaborative activities” with “various intellectual communities and the broader public, including our Princeton neighbors,” according to IAS Communications and Public Relations Manager Lee Sandberg, and it has appointed Alexandra Day, who is currently deputy vice president for alumni engagement at Princeton University, to fill that position beginning February 15.

Taking charge as IAS’s first associate director for strategic initiatives, programming, and partnerships, “Day will seek to engage partners and audiences in programs that convene leaders from academia, industry, governments, and external communities to support the Institute’s core activities and new initiatives,” an IAS press release stated.

The release continued, “At a time when discussions around knowledge, science, and society are increasingly politicized, the Institute — an independent science and humanities organization with a 92-year tradition of fostering discovery, protecting intellectual freedom, and providing refuge for scholars at risk — has both the reputation and experience to provide a credible harbor for free and honest intellectual exchange.”

Day, a 2002 graduate of Princeton University, has been senior alumni affairs officer and a member of the president’s cabinet at the University over the past four years, leading alumni engagement activities as well as a range of public relations, events, and fundraising programs.  Before returning to Princeton in 2019 she was vice president for public affairs at the Juilliard School and previously served as director of public relations at Lyric Opera of Chicago, director of communications for soprano Renee Fleming, and special projects manager at the Metropolitan Opera.

Day has also held positions at corporate and nonprofit institutions in Europe and the U.S., including the International Herald Tribune, IMG Artists, and Universal Music. At Juilliard she worked on audience development, institutional storytelling, reputation management, and deepening engagement with a diverse community of academics, alumni, arts patrons, and prospective students. As vice president, she led Juilliard’s marketing, communications, editorial, digital, and creative services functions, including advertising campaigns for performances, admissions, continuing education, and the Juilliard Store.

“We are fortunate to have gained Alex’s collaboration in shaping opportunities for the Institute’s scholars to share and test ideas and in building paths for those ideas to reach the audiences that can benefit from them,” said IAS Director David Nirenberg in the IAS press release. “Alex has repeatedly demonstrated her abilities to develop new partnerships, design innovative programming, and generate communicative engagement, while at the same time proving a careful steward of institutional values.”

Day commented on her new position and her role at IAS in the coming years.  “It is a privilege to join the Institute for Advanced Study at this moment in its history, working in concert with its world-renowned scholars and visionary leadership to advance independent inquiry and the vibrant exchange of ideas,” she said. “As we look to amplify the Institute’s flagship initiatives, expand programmatic offerings, and deepen the engagement of the IAS community, we can begin to broaden access to the transformative power of discovery and creative inspiration.”

She continued, “I’m grateful for the opportunity to help sustain the Institute’s distinctive strengths and standing as a global center for generating and sharing knowledge.” 

In her new position Day will also lead the Institute’s communications and events teams, working to bolster institutional messaging and broaden engagement with diverse audiences.