Gadi Dechter, an experienced communications and government affairs professional and currently the head of public affairs at APCO Worldwide’s headquarters, has been named Princeton University’s vice president for communications and government affairs, effective Jan. 10.
Gadi Dechter
At APCO -- a public affairs and communications consultancy with more than 30 offices around the world -- Dechter leads global engagements with some of the world’s largest institutions and shares responsibility for setting and implementing the firm’s strategy. He heads a team that advises corporate, non-profit and association clients on a broad range of public policy communications and public relations issues.
Prior to joining APCO’s Washington, D.C., office, Dechter served in the White House as senior adviser to the White House National Economic Council and National Security Council under President Barack Obama. Before his time in the White House, he was deputy director of policy and strategic planning at the U.S. Department of Commerce. Dechter also previously served as managing director of economic policy at the Center for American Progress, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, and was a reporter at Bloomberg News and the Baltimore Sun. He has also held lecturer appointments at George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University and the Maryland Institute College of Art.
“Gadi Dechter brings to Princeton a rare combination of experience as a policy-maker, consultant, award-winning journalist and teacher,” said President Christopher L. Eisgruber, to whom Dechter will report. “His expertise, leadership abilities and deep appreciation for scholarly values will make him a superb addition to the Cabinet and our community. I look forward to welcoming him to Princeton.”
“I’m honored to join the Princeton community and to dedicate myself to supporting its crucial mission,” said Dechter. “I am awed by Princeton’s legacy of academic excellence, its preeminence in teaching and research, and its enduring positive impact on the country and the world. I look forward to working with students, faculty, staff, alumni and the leadership team in advancing President Eisgruber’s inspiring vision for the University.”
As Princeton’s vice president for communications and government affairs, Dechter will provide strategic communications and federal relations advice to the President and other senior University leaders. He will have responsibility for communicating about and advocating for the priorities of Princeton and higher education more broadly, and will oversee the offices of communications and government affairs (located in Washington, D.C.).
Dechter received a B.A. in literature from Yale University and a master’s degree in The Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University.
