Northwestern University Provost Kathleen Hagerty announced will step down by the end of the academic year after serving more than four decades at the university under three different presidents, according to an announcement posted Thursday.
Northwestern Provost Kathleen Hagerty. Credit: Northwestern University
The school said Thursday it will soon convene a search committee to find a replacement for the outgoing provost, who is also the first woman to hold the position in Northwestern history.
“From the day I arrived at Northwestern, I have felt immense pride in the University and the people who make it so special,” Hagerty said in the university’s press release. “During my time in Kellogg [School of Management] and as provost, I have worked with dedicated, smart and caring people who know how to get things done and love Northwestern as much as I do, including an incredibly talented and caring group of deans and senior leaders.”
Hagerty called this the right time to plan for her next chapter.
During her tenure as the school’s chief academic officer, she oversaw projects to enhance academic facilities and initiatives, launched new programs and led the hiring of new faculty.
In its announcement, Northwestern noted that Hagerty had a hand in a wide variety of university initiatives, including the Social Sciences and Global Affairs Hub, the Litowitz Center for Enlightened Disagreement, the Giant Magellan Telescope partnership and the renovation of Deering Library, to name a few.
Jennifer Lackey, a philosophy professor and founding member of the Northwestern Prison Education Program, said Hagerty was integral in launching the project, which grants bachelor’s degrees to incarcerated students.
“Among her many accomplishments, it was with her support that NPEP launched as a full degree-granting program — the first of its kind at a top 10 university,” Lackey said in the announcement. “The most transformative work — the kind that redefines who we are as individuals and as an institution — depends on leaders like Kathleen who are willing to stand firmly on principle, even when the path forward is uncertain.”
Hagerty hired five deans, two vice presidents and was involved in dozens of faculty hires in upper leadership. She began her time in Evanston at the Kellogg School of Management in 1984, and she holds the First Chicago Professorship in Finance.
Previously, she was the associate provost for faculty during the 2019-2020 school year and the Kellogg interim dean before that. Currently, she’s the longest-serving provost in the 18-school Big Ten conference and the chair of the Big Ten Academic Alliance.
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