John Haas
About John
John Haas is thrilled to be joining the Theatre Program as the Director of Academic Administration. Prior to coming to Columbia, he served as an Associate Professor of Instruction and Academic Advisor in the Department of Theatre at Northwestern University, where he mentored students in the Theatre major and the Music Theatre Certificate Program throughout their academic and artistic journeys.
John’s background bridges academic administration, student advising, teaching, and performance. He was a member of Northwestern’s Music Theatre voice faculty at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and created a series of repertoire courses focused on composers such as Stephen Sondheim and Rodgers & Hammerstein. Outside of academia, John maintains a professional private voice studio serving students in Chicago, New York, and globally online.
As a performer, John has appeared in Jeff Award-winning productions of Les Misérables and Sweeney Todd, and was a featured artist in the American Music Theatre Project’s reading of La Révolution Française by Boublil and Schönberg. Most recently, he presented a letter he received from the late Stephen Sondheim at the "Yours, Stephen Sondheim" concert at the Ravinia Festival, where he also performed alongside Heather Headley, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
John is a proud member of Actors’ Equity, the National Association of Teachers of Singing, the College Music Society, and the Musical Theatre Educators’ Alliance. He is excited to bring his experience and passion for student support, academic collaboration, and the performing arts to Columbia.
The Job
The Director of Academic Administration runs day-to-day management of the Program's academic year, summer, and international programs. They direct instructional and student affairs administration, financial operations, and provide administrative oversight of all production activity and general academic administration for the MFA Theatre program, including any new or forthcoming degree and non-degree initiatives. Duties include:
- All financial matters (purchasing, reimbursement, honorariums, etc.)
- Hiring (full-time/adjuncts/staff/Student Service Positions, etc.)
- All curriculum matters (curriculum changes, new curricular proposals, course catalog changes, etc.)
- Internship evaluations and processing
- Program Policy Creation / Clarification
- Registration Issues (excluding room reservations), RAF forms/degree audits/etc.
- Anything that may need to be elevated to the Dean’s Office/Student Affairs.