SINGAPORE – Professor Joseph Liow Chinyong has been appointed the new dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), the National University of Singapore said on Oct 10.
He will start on Oct 15, taking over from Associate Professor Leong Ching, who has served as acting dean since July 1.
He will lead LKYSPP in “advancing its mission to develop future public leaders, contribute cutting-edge research, and engage with pressing policy challenges across Asia and beyond”, the university said.
Prof Liow said in the NUS release that it is a privilege to join LKYSPP, which plays a “vital role in shaping policy discourse and public leadership”.
He pointed that these are “exciting yet challenging times”, and added: “As societies grapple with complex challenges and transitions on issues like sustainability, technology and geopolitics, public policy and governance has never been more critical or contested.
“I look forward to working closely with the school’s outstanding faculty, students, staff and alumni to build on its strong foundations and expand its regional and global contributions.”
Prof Liow will be the third dean of LKYSPP. Professor Danny Quah, the previous dean,
stepped down on June 30 after seven years
in the role.
Former senior diplomat Kishore Mahbubani was the
first dean, serving from the school’s founding in 2004 to 2017
.
Prof Liow is a distinguished scholar of international relations and Asian strategic affairs, NUS said. He spent 28 years at Nanyang Technological University, where he rose from researcher to senior leadership roles, including dean of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and of the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences.
Prof Liow’s research focuses on South-east Asian politics, Muslim societies, US foreign policy, and the geopolitics of East Asia and the Indo-Pacific. He has authored or edited 18 books, and has penned commentaries for The Straits Times and The New York Times, among others.
Since September 2024, he has chaired NUS’ Middle East Institute, and he previously held the Tan Kah Kee Chair in Comparative and International Politics at NTU. He also serves on the boards of the Singapore Social Science Research Council, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and the National Arts Council.
NUS president Tan Eng Chye said Prof Liow’s “academic breadth, respected scholarship, outstanding leadership and genuine commitment to public service” make him well-suited to lead LKYSPP as dean.
Founded in 2004, LKYSPP is one of Asia’s leading institutions for public policy education and research.
