Basil Smikle, a Ph.D. candidate in Teachers College’s Politics & Education program in the Department of Education Policy & Social Analysis, has been hired as the new Executive Director of the New York State Democratic Party.

Smikle is a former state Senate candidate who challenged Democratic Sen. Bill Perkins in a 2010 primary. He served as an aide to Hillary Clinton during her first U.S. Senate run in 2000 and on her staff as deputy state director. He has run a consulting firm and is a contributor to the online publication The Hill.

Smikle also holds a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and is an adjunct lecturer there. He has been the focus of stories in New York Magazine and The Wall Street Journal.

Published Monday, Apr. 20, 2015