New Associate Dean for Information Systems Joins KSG

Anne Drazen, current assistant dean and chief technology officer at the M.I.T. Sloan School of Management, will join the Kennedy School on June 29 as Associate Dean for Information Systems, announced Dean Joseph S. Nye Jr. today.

At M.I.T., Drazen led the distance learning initiative for the Sloan School and developed major systems including student course and interview bidding. Responsible for technical support to faculty, staff, and students, Drazen dramatically improved assistance for faculty research and brought the Sloan School to the forefront of technology with state-of-the-art student labs and laptop support.

"Anne brings to the Kennedy School the energy and vision necessary to develop the first-class technological infrastructure needed for the future," said Dean Nye. "Her outstanding experience in strategic technology planning and implementation underscores her ability to look at the big picture as well as manage the minutiae."

"My initial perception of the Kennedy School as an institution of excellence has only been enhanced by actually meeting the people who work there," said Drazen. "The School is alive. The faculty, staff and students are a dynamic group of people who are open to new ideas and who genuinely understand the important role technology plays in the development of future leaders. I look forward to working with Dean Nye to develop the School's strategic IT [information technology] planning and being a part of this exciting establishment."

The representative for the Sloan School on the M.I.T. President's Council on Educational Technology, Drazen brings to the Kennedy School expertise in audio-visual and videoconferencing for the classroom as well as Web course management and academic computing.

Prior to joining M.I.T. in 1986, Drazen was the group manager for software product marketing at Data General Corporation. In charge of overall software support planning, she implemented software support strategies for field personnel and introduced new processes to insure high quality support.

Drazen has also worked at Wang Laboratories as director of integrated systems; at Dennison Manufacturing in the Word/Plex Division as an applications research manager; and at First Data Corporation as a product marketing manager.

A 1968 graduate of Syracuse University with a B.S. in mathematics, Drazen earned her M.S. in Computer and Information Science from Ohio State University in 1970. She is co-founder of the Business School Computing Director's organization.