Ann Kerwin is the wife of American University’s 14th president, Dr. Cornelius Kerwin.  Before retiring in 2007, she worked for nearly 30 years at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, where she was the director of Human Resources. Ann is a native of Indianapolis, Indiana, and is a graduate of American University’s College of Arts and Sciences, where she majored in art history. After completing her undergraduate studies, she lived and worked in Boston for a brief time, then moved with her husband to Baltimore, where she worked in the Humanities Center at Johns Hopkins University. When the Kerwins returned to Washington, Ann began her career at the Corcoran.

Ann Kerwin has focused most of her attention at American on the Arboretum, and can often be found at the Katzen Art Center’s museum and Abramson Family Recital Hall, as well as, student performances at the Greenberg Theatre. She is also an honorary board member of AU Hillel and a member of the Friends of the AU Library and has joined AU students and faculty in reading to local elementary school children as part of the annual Dr. Seuss Day activities.

Ann is a long-time member of Washington Hebrew Congregation and is an active participant in the Catholic-Jewish Dialogue, sponsored by Washington Hebrew and Our Lady of Victory Church.

In addition to being AU alumni, the Kerwins are AU parents. Their elder son, Michael, is a graduate of the School of Communication; Michael’s wife, Kara Hornung Kerwin, is an SPA graduate. The Kerwins' younger son, Alex, is a graduate of Tufts University and is currently enrolled in an MBA program at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.