William I. Brustein stepped down as Vice President for Global Strategies and International Affairs at West Virginia University, on July 1, 2020, to assume the positions of Special Assistant to the President for Global Affairs and Eberly Family Distinguished Professor. His work at West Virginia University is dedicated to fully integrating international and multicultural experiences to the academic units within the university and expanding and enhancing its global reach. Dr. Brustein has spent his administrative career focused on international education.
Before coming to West Virginia University in 2016, he was the Vice Provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs and President of The Ohio State University Global Gateways. Professor Brustein has published widely in the areas of political extremism and ethnic/religious/racial prejudice. Brustein’s book The Logic of Evil: The Social Origins of the Nazi Party, 1925-1933 (Yale University Press) was named the winner of the 1997 James S. Coleman Distinguished Contribution to Rational-Choice Scholarship from the American Sociological Association. He has previously served as president of the Association of International Education Administrators, chair of NAFSA’s International Education Leadership Knowledge Community and chair of the Senior International Officers of the Big Ten Academic Alliance. He is also the recipient of the 2013 Charles Klasek Award for outstanding service to the field of international education administration by the Association of International Education Administrators.