Princeton University Press named Peter Dougherty, a 33-year publishing veteran, as its new director Wednesday, following a Tuesday meeting of its Board of Trustees.
Dougherty will take the position after current director Walter Lippincott '60 retires at the end of June.
Dougherty joined the Press in 1992 as senior economics editor and was later promoted to group publisher for the social sciences.
"My goal for the Press is to concentrate our efforts on signing and publishing the major books in the field in which we publish," Dougherty said, while seeking a blaance of books in the sciences, social sciences and humanities.
He plans to continue the progress Lippincott made, building on "the many great things [Lippincott] did for the Press" as director.
But he also intends to broaden the Press' reach to incorporate "a strong international emphasis" in the kinds of books it publishes and how those books are marketed, following the lead of the Press' 2000 international bestseller "Irrational Exuberance," by Yale University Professor Robert Shiller.
Dougherty helped publish the Press' books on economics, higher education and public affairs and was responsible for supervising sociology and political science editors.
He has edited the books of seven Nobel prizewinning economists, as well as works by former Princeton University President William Bowen and former Harvard University President Derek Bok's book about the role of race in university admissions.
After coming to Princeton, he also edited "The Essential John Nash," a book coauthored by Sylvia Nasar, author of "A Beautiful Mind."
Managing editor Elizabeth Byrd said she is "tickled pink and think[s] Peter Dougherty is a wonderful choice."
She added, "I am expecting great things from Peter; I have absolute confidence in him."
In addition to editing, Dougherty wrote "Who's Afraid of Adam Smith?: How the Market Got Its Soul," which was published in 2002 by John Wiley and Sons.
The book discusses how economists use Smith's writings to explain how economic markets create fiscal and social capital.
Dougherty has also written articles about economics and culture that have run in the Financial Times, the Los Angeles Times and The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Before coming to Princeton, Dougherty was an editor at five publishing houses, including McGraw-Hill and St. Martin's Press, two major academic publishers.
"I've worked for Walter Lippincott for nearly 13 years and he is a fine director [and] a good publisher," Dougherty said.
When Lippincott became the Press' director 19 years ago he promised himself that he would retire at his current age of 65. "I'm looking forward to being retired and doing things I haven't had time to do," he said.
But he is not quite sure what that means for him. Asked about having more free time to read the Press' scholarly publications, he said, "I'm not sure I'll be doing a lot of that."
His successor, meanwhile, is focusing on the future of the Press.
"We will be strong across the board, mirroring the strengths of the University," Dougherty said.
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