Rita Hauser Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

One of Hunter’s most distinguished alumni, Rita Hauser (BA ’54), has been elected to one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary societies, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Joining her in the Academy’s “class of 2012” are some of the nation’s most prominent figures, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; pianist, conductor and composer Andre Previn; violinist Midori Goto, and philanthropist Melinda Gates.

Members of the Academy are chosen based on their contributions to American society, including achievements in science and technology, national security, social policy, the humanities and culture, and education.

Hauser – now president of the Hauser Foundation and chair of the International Peace Institute – was a Fulbright Scholar who earned a doctorate from the University of Strasbourg in France, a law license from the University of Paris and an LLB from NYU Law School (she also attended Harvard Law School). She became one of the nation’s foremost international lawyers and served in several public policy roles, including U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission. In 2001, George W. Bush named her to the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, and Barack Obama renewed the appointment in 2009.

Hauser has also been active in cultural affairs. She was a director of the New York Philharmonic Society for more than 20 years and is now a director of Lincoln Center. She and her husband, Gustave, established the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Harvard’s Kennedy School and were the principal benefactors of the Hauser Global Law School Program at NYU Law School.