Laurent Pernot

Laurent Pernot joined Columbia as Chief of Staff to the President in 2017. Prior to that, Pernot served as executive vice chancellor and senior advisor of City Colleges of Chicago, a seven-campus system with more than 90,000 students, 3,500 staff members, and a $524 million operating budget. He oversaw the rebranding of City Colleges and helped coordinate system-wide efforts in support of its Reinvention Initiative, which resulted in record-level student graduation and completion rates within the last six years. Pernot also helped to coordinate the design concept, project structure, and bond issues for construction of the new $251 million Malcolm X College, which opened in January 2016. Additionally, he was instrumental in launching the College to Careers and Chicago Star scholarship initiatives, and successfully negotiated labor contracts, including with full-time faculty.

Pernot has two decades of experience advancing and implementing institutional agendas and change, having worked in the University of Illinois at Chicago's Office of Public Affairs and for prominent regional and national public affairs consultancies. He also led advocacy, marketing, government, and community relations for Fortune 500 companies and non-profits. As principal at Platform Public Affairs, Pernot served as communications counsel to the Chicago Children's Museum, and public relations counsel and spokesperson for the Toyota Park soccer and concert venue. As vice president of public affairs at Hill+Knowlton Strategies, he led communications for the Alliance to Protect the Illinois Constitution, a successful Illinois referendum effort to keep key state constitutional protections intact. Additionally, he was part of the team that helped launch the education advocacy organization Advance Illinois. Pernot previously served as vice president of Jasculca Terman Strategic Communications, overseeing legislative and public awareness campaigns for industry associations and the City of Chicago, and handling issues involving education, healthcare and regulation for companies such as AT&T, CNA, Mesirow Financial, and Nicor.

Pernot is the author of the peer-reviewed book Before the Ivy: The Cubs' Glory Years in Pre-Wrigley Chicago and the short story "Fernand: A French Family in War." Pernot earned an MA and BA in political science from the University of Illinois at Chicago.