Message from President-Elect Schill
Dear Northwestern colleagues,
I am thrilled, honored and humbled to join you this fall as Northwestern’s 17th president. As one of the world’s most prominent universities, Northwestern has a long tradition of educating the brightest minds and pushing the boundaries of research and innovation.
As a first-generation college graduate, I know the value of a college education and how it can transform one’s life. My dad worked in a clothing factory and my mother was a registered nurse. They instilled in me from an early age the importance of higher education, and it became my life’s passion.
I cannot wait to arrive in Evanston so that I may build upon the tremendous accomplishments of my esteemed predecessors Henry Bienen and Morty Schapiro. They each, in different ways, contributed immeasurably to elevating Northwestern to a Top 10 university — and one of the most respected universities on the globe.
I also want to acknowledge my good friend, Rebecca Blank, who was set to become Northwestern’s next president before her medical diagnosis. I know how deeply she wanted to join you, and I hope to honor her as I assume the presidency.
At Oregon, I worked hard with our students, faculty and staff to make the university a more inclusive community where all could flourish. I look forward to engaging with the entire Northwestern community to enhance diversity in all of its forms and to foster a sense of belonging and respect.
I also want to support our students so that they might make our world a better place, and our faculty whose pathbreaking research can provide us with the keys to a better, healthier and more sustainable future.
I know you have dealt with a lot of change in recent months, and my arrival will bring yet another change. My priority will be to listen and learn the culture. I want to deeply understand Northwestern, work with our shared governance partners and collaboratively explore opportunities for the future.
Northwestern is strong in so many areas — the arts and humanities, the physical and medical sciences, the professions, on the athletic fields and in the classrooms. We are blessed by leaders and a Board of Trustees whose deep commitment to human potential is awe-inspiring. I believe that by working together, we can all make a difference, and I am looking forward to the next great chapter in our University’s history.
Michael Schill
President-Elect of Northwestern University