Meet the Provost
Edward J. Balleisen
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor of History
Edward J. Balleisen was named provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the George Washington University, effective July 1, 2026. Provost Balleisen is GW’s chief academic officer, overseeing the university’s 10 schools and colleges, its institutes and museums, several administrative divisions that advance and support its education and research missions, institutional and academic planning, and the academic life cycle of the university’s faculty.
A nationally recognized academic leader, Provost Balleisen joins GW after more than 25 years at Duke University, where he most recently served as senior vice provost for interdisciplinary programs and initiatives. In this role, Provost Balleisen served on Duke's provost leadership team and led university-wide efforts to expand interdisciplinary research, education, and engagement across Duke’s 10 schools. He oversaw a broad portfolio of faculty and staff, launched innovative academic programs, and supported emerging areas of scholarship. Playing an integral role in institutional leadership and strategic decision making, he helped strengthen Duke's global reputation for interdisciplinary work, including recognition as one of the top institutions worldwide for interdisciplinary science.
A widely published historian, Provost Balleisen is an expert on institutional responses to faultlines in American capitalism, as well as the evolution of modern regulatory governance. His most recent book is “Fraud: An American History from Barnum to Madoff” (Princeton University Press, 2017), which received the Business History Conference’s 2018 Ralph Gomory Prize. He has received grants from the Mellon, Teagle and Smith Richardson Foundations, the National Endowment for the Humanities, The Duke Endowment, and the American Council of Learned Societies, as well as multiple teaching and mentoring awards.
Provost Balleisen earned his bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and his master’s and doctoral degrees in American history from Yale University.
Get to Know Ed Balleisen (April 3, 2026)
Provost Balleisen's Curriculum Vitae
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