Kingra

Cornell University Press has announced the appointment of Mahinder Kingra to the position of editor-in-chief effective January 2016.

He will manage a department of six acquisitions editors and two acquisitions assistants, and will acquire books in literary studies, medieval studies, classics and other humanities disciplines.

Kingra has more than 20 years of experience in academic and trade publishing. In 2004, he joined Cornell University Press as director of marketing, where he helped lead initiatives in digital printing, e-book distribution and sales, metadata management, and electronic marketing.

Kingra also acquired several leading titles for the press and acted as interim co-director last year alongside outgoing editor-in-chief Peter Potter. Potter has been hired as director of publishing strategy for University Libraries at Virginia Tech.

“We are so fortunate to have Mahinder’s wealth of experience and expertise to help guide us into this new chapter of Cornell University Press,” said Director Dean Smith. “His advancement within the press brings continuity and consistency to our operations, and his extensive background in marketing will be an extremely valuable asset as we forge ahead into new editorial directions. Mahinder’s commitment to acquiring the very best of scholarly work is a perfect fit for both our long-standing reputation for quality and our role as America’s first university press.”

Kingra received his bachelor’s degree in history from Columbia University and began his publishing career working in the publicity department at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. After receiving a master’s in history at Duke University, he was publicist, publicity manager and associate editor at The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996-2004.