La Salle News President-elect Joe Biden nominates La Salle alumnus to head the CIA William J. Burns, ’78, a career diplomat, retired from the U.S. Department of State in 2014. William J. Burns, ’78, a career ambassador and retired foreign service officer, has been nominated by President-elect Joe Biden to serve as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Burns, a native of the Philadelphia area, was a student in La Salle’s Honors Program who graduated in 1978 with an undergraduate degree in history. As Biden’s nominee to lead the CIA, Burns must pass through a U.S. Senate confirmation process before he can begin serving in this role. Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States in a Jan. 20 inauguration.