It's Been A Privilege

Dear Readers: After more than 20 years as editor-in-chief of BusinessWeek, I will step down on Apr. 1, 2005. I am leaving to become the founding dean of a new Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York. The first class will arrive in August, 2006. My task is to help develop an innovative curriculum, hire a strong faculty, recruit promising students, and design a physical space for the school, which will be located in the old New York Herald-Tribune building on West 41st Street in Manhattan. I also hope to do some teaching. And, inevitably, I'll try to raise some money for the school.

This exciting challenge combines many of the things I care deeply about: journalism, public education, and New York City. Not least, it offers the chance to increase the participation of minorities and immigrants in our profession. I am a graduate of the City College of New York, and this new role stirs my soul. I'm excited by the prospect -- and a little nervous.