The Low Down

Did you know that Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, two of America's Founding Fathers—and half of the "Quartet" behind the adoption of the Constitution—are Columbia alumni? In his book, The Quartet, released last year, Joseph Ellis says the men were responsible for "the most creative and consequential act of political leadership in American history."  

In honor of upcoming Independence Day, here are a few facts about Alexander Hamilton and John Jay.

For most Columbia students and alumni, when you hear the words "jazz at Columbia" it's almost impossible not to think of Christopher Washburne '92GSAS, '94GSAS, '99GSAS. Washburne is an Associate Professor of Music and the Director of the Louis Armstrong Jazz Performance program at Columbia. In addition to being a jazz scholar, he's a jazz musician in his own right. He has performed with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Tito Puente, Justin Timberlake, Marc Anthony, Celine Dion, and the list goes on. His most common instrument of choice is the trombone, though he also plays the tube, the didjeridu, and percussion.

In this episode, we play you a mashup of two talks that Washburne gave at Columbia. One he gave as part of the School of Professional Studies (SPS) T@lks Columbia series. The other was delivered to Columbia staff members. In both talks, Washburne explores the creative process of jazz, paying particular attention to the role that collaboration and improvisation plays. And in this exploration, he delves into how this process can inform your everyday decisions in the workplace, from leadership and adaptability to innovation and risk management.

Who knew jazz was so useful? Well...Washburne did.

You may know that Columbia's lion—a ubiquitous theme seen around campus and the universal emblem of the entire Columbia athletics community, including Barnard—has long been a part of who we are, but you may not know that Columbia alumni played pivotal roles in its history, evolution, and adoption as part of our school identity.  

Here are six facts you may not know about Columbia's king of the jungle, and the Columbia alumni who crowned him. 

Sree Sreenivasan '93JRN, stepped down from his post as chief digital officer at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on June 17, amid the museum's efforts to scale back costs due to a $10 million deficit. 

Sreenivasan has worked at the Met for three years and led the Met’s recent website redesign and the development of a smartphone app, The New York Times reported. 

According to the Times, he will stay on temporarily as a consultant.

Some may vent, others may feel like hiding—what Sreenivasan did, though, made news.

Read on for some highlights from Quartz of what the former Columbia Journalism School professor and Columbia chief digital officer did exactly right.

Columbia Business School alumnus Tim Kopra '13BUS landed on Earth this weekend after six months on the International Space Station (ISS).

Here's your weekly Low Down from the Columbia Alumni Association.

When it comes to Broadway musicals, Columbia alumni have contributed a startling amount to the canon of musical theater. Rodgers and Hammerstein '16CC set the musical standard during the golden age of broadway in the 40s and 50s; the music of John Kander '54GSAS probed the darker recesses of humanity, giving legendary choreographer, Bob Fosse, innovation-inspiring scores. Most recently, Tom Kitt '96CC and Brian Yorkey '93CC were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for their musical, Next to Normal, in 2008, and Jeanine Tesori '83BC made history in 2015 with Fun Home, when she was part of the first all-female writing team to win the Tony Award.

But in today's podcast episode, we’re turning our attention to Columbia alumni who work in a different capacity on Broadway. Today, we’re talking about directors.

Thanks to recent events, hosted by Columbia College Women and CAA Arts Access, we were able to record discussions with two alumni who are currently working on Broadway: Diane Paulus '97SOA (Director, Waitress) and Tyne Rafaeli '14SOA (Associate Director, Fiddler on the Roof).

In order to celebrate all who build Columbia University's spirit, the University Trustees and the Board of the Columbia Alumni Association (CAA) established The Campbell Award, which is presented by the CAA to a graduating student at each School who shows exceptional leadership and Columbia spirit as exemplified by the late Bill Campbell '62CC, '64TC, Chair Emeritus, University Trustee and CAA co-founder.

Here's your latest news from the Columbia alumni community.

Here's your weekly Low Down roundup from the Columbia Alumni Association: