Senator Joseph I. Lieberman

Joseph I. Lieberman was for 24 years a member of the U.S. Senate from Connecticut. At the end of his service in January 2013, he was Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and a senior member of the Armed Services Committee. Through both Committee positions, he became a leader in protecting the security of the American people and supporting American international leadership. Senator Lieberman was known as a national leader who works across party lines to get things done and who speaks his conscience regardless of the political consequences. Before his election to the Senate in 1988, Senator Lieberman served 10 years in the Connecticut State Senate and 6 years as Connecticut's Attorney General. In 2000 he was the Democratic candidate for Vice President of the United States. Senator Lieberman also served on the board of several nonprofit organizations including the McCain Institute.

After leaving politics, Senator Lieberman served as Senior Counsel at the law firm of Kasowitz, Benson, Torres LLP in New York. His involvement with began as a political science professor, teaching courses on American politics and presidential history. He joined the University’s Board of Trustees in 2021 and envisioned a center for public service and advocacy as a cornerstone of his legacy, one that would instill integrity and a focus on progress through centrism. The events of October 7 only further emphasized the need for the center to Senator Lieberman, culminating in its launch in Fall 2024. Sadly, Senator Lieberman did not live to see the launch of the center, passing away in March 2024, but his legacy of courage, faith and fortitude lives on through the Lieberman-Mitzner Scholars and the millions of Americas who were impacted by his many years of public service.

Senator Lieberman is survived by his wife Hadassah Freilich Lieberman, their four children and 13 grandchildren.