James H. Billington

James Hadley Billington (born June 1, 1929) is an American academic and author who taught history at Harvard and Princeton before serving for 42 years as CEO of four federal cultural institutions. He served as the 13th Librarian of Congress after being nominated as 13th by President Ronald Reagan in 1987, and his appointment was approved unanimously by the U.S. Senate. He retired as Librarian on September 30, 2015.

Biography

James Hadley Billington was an American professor of Russian and European history at Harvard and Princeton before serving for 42 years as CEO of four federal cultural institutions—the Fulbright Program, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, the Library of Congress and Open World. His appointment as 13th Librarian of Congress in 1987 was approved unanimously by the U.S. Senate. He has announced that he will retire as Librarian effective September 30, 2015.

Early years

Born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, Billington was educated in Philadelphia-area public schools. He was class valedictorian at both Lower Merion High School and Princeton University, where he graduated with highest honors in 1950. Three years later, he earned his doctorate from Balliol College, Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar and student of the philosopher, Isaiah Berlin.