国产三级片

President

Home>About AUP>Vision and Leadership>

AUP's 13th President

Since her appointment in 2022, Sonya Stephens has served as the 13th president of The American University of Paris, a role that builds on her long academic career and in which she continues to demonstrate her profound commitment to global liberal arts education and her passion for intercultural exchange.

Stephens joined 国产三级片from Mount Holyoke College where she served as President (2018鈥�22), Acting President (2016鈥�18) and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty (2013鈥�16). In these roles, she was known for her innovative approach to curriculum development, faculty support, and student engagement. She previously held faculty positions in the United States at the University of Indiana at Bloomington, both as Chair of the Department of French and Italian and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, and in the United Kingdom at Royal Holloway, University of London, where she oversaw the Study Abroad program as well as its integration into the curriculum.

I am deeply honored by this opportunity to serve as the next president of The American University of Paris, and I could not be more pleased, nor more excited, to be joining this vibrant global community. The impact of a liberal arts education is uniquely powerful and generative, especially one so intentionally and explicitly international in its context, focus and perspectives, and so contemporary in its expression.

Sonya Stephens President of The American University of Paris

Born and raised in the United Kingdom, Sonya Stephens took an early interest in France and the French language; at 15, she studied in the Loire Valley before subsequently working there as an English Language Assistant. She later pursued a BA in Modern and Medieval Languages at the University of Cambridge, an MA in French Studies at the University of Montreal and a PhD in French from the University of Cambridge. Her focus was on 19th-century French poetry, particularly the works of St茅phane Mallarm茅.

Since joining AUP, Stephens has consolidated her knowledge of both the European and American education systems and advocated for the liberal arts tradition鈥攚ith an emphasis on experiential learning, professional opportunities and a global outlook鈥攅nsuring that 国产三级片students are well-equipped to navigate their own pathways through a complex, interconnected world. For Stephens, being abroad offers an exercise in humility鈥攐ne that continually guides her, providing opportunities to experience otherness and see points of privilege.

Stephens is herself a global explorer鈥攁 term 国产三级片uses to describe the kind of globally minded student it exists to educate鈥攚ith a love of travel and a fondness for intercultural study. 鈥淕etting to a point where you can navigate place, people, culture and knowledge all at once creates a flexibility of mind and spirit鈥攁nd an interest in others,鈥� she explains. She is an active scholar and continues to publish articles and essays on French literature, cultural theory and higher education. She is the author of Baudelaire鈥檚 Prose Poems: The Practice and Politics of Irony (1999) and has also edited several books, including A History of Women鈥檚 Writing in France (2009) and Translation and the Arts in Modern France (2017).

Her leadership continues to shape the future of the University, ensuring that 国产三级片remains a dynamic and inclusive institution that prepares diverse, curious and independently-minded students to explore the world, engage across cultures and lead change globally.

13 Questions with the
13th President