FACULTY DIRECTORY
Kenneth L. Marcus
Visiting Professor
Mailing Address:
Baruch College/CUNY
School of Public Affairs
One Bernard Baruch Way, Box D-0901
New York, NY 10010
Office Location: 137 east 22nd Street, Room 403
Phone: 646 660-6989
Fax: 646 660-6701
Email: Kenneth.Marcus@baruch.cuny.edu
Biography
Kenneth L. Marcus is the Lillie and Nathan Ackerman Visiting Professor of Equality and Justice in America . The holder of the Ackerman Chair has an important role at Baruch College as he is expected not only to assume the normal teaching and research obligations of any faculty member, but also to engender a thoughtful dialogue in the academy and the public affairs’ community about issues of race and ethnicity. Marcus is teaching two courses in the spring term of 2008: Public Administration in Modern Society and Law for the Education Administrator.
Prior to joining SPA, Marcus had been the Staff Director of the United States Commission on Civil Rights, a position appointed by the President of the United States with the concurrence of the Commission. As Staff Director from 2004 to 2008, he served as the agency’s chief executive officer, responsible for providing leadership and direction to the agency’s staff.
From 2002 to 2004 Mr. Marcus was delegated the authority of Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights and served simultaneously as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Education for Enforcement. As head of the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Marcus was the principal civil rights advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Education and oversaw the resolution of approximately 5,000 civil rights cases per year through OCR’s twelve enforcement offices. Additionally, OCR published a path-breaking report on Achieving Diversity: Race-Neutral Alternatives in American Education (2004). Marcus also served as a Commissioner on the U.S. Commission on Brown v. Board of Education.
Prior to joining the Department of Education, Marcus worked in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as the General Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. As head of HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO), Marcus was the principal civil rights advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and oversaw the work of FHEO’s 54 offices.
Before entering public service, Marcus was a litigation partner in two major law firms. In the courtroom, he was known for his successful representation of individuals who had been denied constitutional and civil rights, including rights protected under the First Amendment.
A graduate of Williams College, magna cum laude, and the University of California at Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall), Marcus and his wife and daughter live in Leesburg, Virginia.
View Curriculum Vitae [PDF]
One Bernard Baruch Way (55 Lexington at 24th St), New York, NY 10010 646 660-6700
