Michael A. Nutter served as the 98th mayor of Philadelphia—the nation’s fifth largest city—from January 2008 to January 2016, and as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors from 2012 to 2013. During his time in office, he was widely recognized as a reformer, leading changes in policing, economic development, taxation, sustainability policy, and other areas. In 2014, Nutter was named as one of Governing magazine’s Public Officials of the Year; in 2011, Esquire magazine cited him among its Americans of the Year. During Nutter’s mayoralty, Philadelphia’s city government received more than 150 awards for innovative programs, good government practices, and general excellence. Before winning election as the city’s chief executive, Nutter served on the Philadelphia City Council for almost 15 years, from 1992 to 2006. He was also the chairman of the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority Board from 2003 to 2007.
He currently serves as Managing Director of the Public Service and Policy Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania's Stuart Weitzman School of Design, a Senior Executive Fellow in the City and Regional Planning Department at Weitzman, and Fellow at Penn’s Institute for Urban Research (PennIUR). He also serves as a distinguished faculty member at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).
