Scott S. Cowen (born 27 July 1946)[1] is president emeritus of Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he was also Seymour S. Goodman Memorial Professor in the A.B.

He was interim president of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio from 2020 to 2021, and currently serves as Distinguished Presidential Visiting Professor of Leadership and Management at CWRU.

[2] His most recent book, Winnebagos on Wednesdays: How Visionary Leadership Can Transform Higher Education, was published by Princeton University Press in 2018.

[8] Cowen chaired the Posse Foundation’s New Orleans Advisory Board[9] and is a former director of several public and private companies including, most recently, American Greetings, Barnes & Noble,[10] Forest City Realty Trust,[11] and Newell Brands.

[15][17] Cowen also served as an overseer of TIAA-CREF,[18] a member of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics,[19] and is a trustee emeritus of the University of Notre Dame.

Prior to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Cowen was known in higher education as a supporter of reform in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to bolster academics involving athletes and also to open Bowl Championship Series (BCS) eligibility to teams in conferences such as Conference USA (C-USA) to which Tulane belonged.

"[24] Hurricane Katrina and flood waters resulting from the levee's failures hit Tulane's uptown and downtown campuses shortly after the start of the 2005 fall semester.

[26] At the same time, Tulane became the first and only major private research university to incorporate public service into its core curriculum.

[28] Cowen was critical of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the State of Louisiana for their handling of Katrina recovery.

[31] This assignment led to the creation of a new institute at Tulane focused on advancing public education and youth success.