Joseph E. Aoun

Joseph Aoun
Aoun in 2008
7th President of Northeastern University
Assumed office
August 2006
Preceded byRichard M. Freeland
Personal details
Born (1953-03-26) March 26, 1953
Beirut, Lebanon
EducationSaint Joseph University of Beirut (BA)
Paris 8 University Vincennes-Saint-Denis (MA)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD)
Academic background
ThesisThe formal nature of anaphoric relations (1982)
Doctoral advisorNoam Chomsky
Academic work
DisciplineLinguistics
InstitutionsUniversity of Southern California
Northeastern University

Joseph Elias Aoun (born March 26, 1953) is a Lebanese-born American linguist, currently serving as the 7th president of Northeastern University since August 2006. He was previously a professor and dean at the University of Southern California. As a theoretical syntactician, he is known for his work on logical form and wh-movement. Aoun was the eighth highest-paid private college president in the United States during the 2022 fiscal year.