Jared Cohon

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Jared Leigh Cohon (October 7, 1947 – March 16, 2024) was an American academic administrator who served as the eighth president of Carnegie Mellon University from 1997 to 2013. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio.

Education and career
- He earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Master of Science and a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from MIT (1972 and 1973).
- Before joining Carnegie Mellon, he was the Dean of the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a professor at Yale University (1992–1997). He also taught at Johns Hopkins University (1973–1992) in Geography and Environmental Engineering and held roles including Assistant and Associate Dean of Engineering and Vice Provost for Research.
- As CMU president, he began in 1997 and, in his first month, oversaw the removal of trees to build the Purnell Center for the Arts.

Later work and honors
- Cohon stepped down as CMU president in 2013 and returned as a University Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering and Public Policy departments, and he directed the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation.
- In 2014, CMU renamed the University Center the Cohon University Center in his honor.
- He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2012 for his work in environmental systems analysis and leadership in higher education. He also received the National Engineering Award from the American Association of Engineering Societies and was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Death
- Cohon died on March 16, 2024, at age 76 in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.