Jim Finkelstein

George Mason University

As of July 2016, James H. Finkelstein is Professor Emeritus of Public Policy at George Mason University. Since joining Mason in 1989, he held a variety of administrative positions including serving as the founding Vice Dean of the School of Public Policy, Associate Dean of the College of Education and Human Development, and the founding Associate Director for the university’s Prince William Campus.

Prior to joining Mason, he was Dean for Research, Development, Governmental Affairs and Planning at New York University's School of Education, Health, Nursing and Arts Professions. He has been a research administrator in the College of Education at The Ohio State University and as the special assistant to the Vice President for University Communications and Development. He started his career as an elementary school teacher in Cincinnati, Ohio.

His principal areas of interest and research have been in education ranging from the adoption/implementation of technology to qualitative research methodologies to higher education. His current research focuses on executive compensation in higher education, the role of university presidents serving on corporate boards.

He is an active member of a variety of professional associations including the American Educational Research Association. He has served as a consultant to numerous government agencies and private sector firms. He was the founding North American editor of the journal AI & Society published by Springer and is a member of its editorial board. He was a founding member of the board for both the Institute for Educational Transformation, Inc., the C.R. Williams Early Childhood Center and the Lugano Academy for the Electronic Arts. He served as an executive producer of the public affairs series, Sesno Reports, which aired on PBS affiliates nationwide.

He has served on the boards of directors for the International Eye Foundation and the International Psychotherapy Institute.