June 22, 2001
Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer President Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson
has been named to the Boards of Directors of AT&T and
Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG).
The PSEG announcement was made June 19 by E. James Ferland,
chairman, president, and CEO. “Dr. Jackson is widely recognized
as one of the premier voices in science and technology policy
and education in the country today,” said Ferland. “Her
scholarship, her range of research and policy experience, her
advocacy, and her commitment to issues of social justice will
be a valuable addition to this board. We feel very fortunate to
have her.”
The AT&T announcement was made June 20 by Chairman and CEO
Michael Armstrong, who also announced the appointment of J.
Michael Cook, retired chairman and CEO of Deloitte & Touche
LLP, one of the leading professional services firms. Armstrong
noted that the two new appointees “bring diverse and valuable
perspectives to AT&T’s board.” “I am looking forward to
working with them as we shape the AT&T of the future,”
Armstrong said.
Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D.
A physicist, educator, researcher, and former chairman of the
Nuclear Regulatory Agency, Dr. Jackson became the 18th
president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on July 1, 1999.
Since then, she has led Rensselaer’s transformation into
becoming a world-class research university with global reach
and global impact.
Upon joining the Institute, Jackson immediately set about
developing and implementing a detailed strategic plan — called
“The Rensselaer Plan” — to increase the graduate school,
virtually triple research, and build prominence in
biotechnology and information technology. This Plan has
attracted widespread support that includes an anonymous gift of
$360 million, one of the top three single gifts to any
university in the United States (Stanford University, followed
by Rensselaer, and MIT).
Dr. Jackson’s career prior to becoming Rensselaer’s president
has encompassed senior positions in government, as Chairman of
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; in industry and
research, as a theoretical physicist at the former AT&T
Bell Laboratories; and in academe, as a professor of
theoretical physics at Rutgers University.
Dr. Jackson holds a Ph.D. in theoretical physics from MIT
(1973) and an S.B. in physics from MIT (1968).
Dr. Jackson was named a member of the National Academy of
Engineering (NAE) in February 2001. She is also a fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1991) and the American
Physical Society (1986). She is a member of a number of other
professional organizations. Dr. Jackson holds 16 honorary
doctoral degrees.
In addition to the two new board appointments, Dr. Jackson
serves as a director of FedEx Corporation, Marconi
International Fellowship Foundation, Newport News Shipbuilding,
SCI Systems Inc., Sealed Air Corporation, USX Corporation, and
as a trustee of the Brookings Institution. She serves on the
executive committee of the Council on Competitiveness, and on
the Council of the Government-University-Industry Research
Roundtable.
Dr. Jackson is a Life Member of the MIT Corporation (the MIT
Board of Trustees). She also is a trustee of the Liberty
Science Center (N.J.), the Pingry School (Martinsville, N.J.),
and the Emma Willard School (Troy, N.Y.).
Dr. Jackson was the recipient on Feb. 7, 2001 of the “Immortal
Award” for the 15th Annual Black History Makers sponsored by
Associated Black Charities. In February 2001, Dr. Jackson
became the first woman to win the Black Engineer of the Year
Award by US Black Engineer & Information Technology
magazine.
PSEG
PSEG is a $21 billion energy and energy services company with
three major subsidiaries: PSE&G, a regulated electric and
gas distribution business; PSEG Power, a major U.S. power
producer; and PSEG Energy Holdings, the parent of PSEG’s other
unregulated businesses including: PSEG Global, a major
international developer and operator of power generation and
distribution, PSEG Resources, which invests in energy-related
financial transactions, and PSEG Energy Technologies, which
provides energy-related services to industrial and commercial
customers.
AT&T
AT&T is among the world’s premier voice, video, and data
communications companies, serving consumers, businesses and
government. AT&T has annual revenues of nearly $66 billion
and 162,000 employees, and provides services to customers
worldwide. Backed by the research and development capabilities
of AT&T Labs, the company runs the world’s largest
communications network, is the largest cable operator in the
U.S., and has one of the largest digital wireless networks in
North America.
Contact: Bruce Adams
Phone: (518) 276-6531
E-mail: N/A