2023-09-14 07:00:00
After a monthslong search, the board of the University of Louisiana System on Thursday selected Kathy Johnson as the new president of the University of New Orleans.
Johnson, the chief academic officer of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, will be the first woman to lead the public university in its 65-year history.
She was among five candidates interviewed on campus last month, two of whom were recommended by a panel of faculty, staff and students for consideration by the university system’s board of supervisors. Walter Kimbrough, the former president of Dillard University, was the other finalist.
“I’m just incredibly excited because of the potential I see in the university,” Johnson said. “[UNO] can help strengthen the city of New Orleans through the research that faculty do and student engagement in their community.”
“It’s really a higher educator’s dream come true,” she added.
Johnson, who has a Ph.D. in psychology, has worked in higher education for over 30 years and has experience both as an academic and as an administrator. In her prior role in Indiana, she focused on efforts related to student success, community engagement, and diversity and inclusion.
When she starts the job, Johnson will be taking over for John Nicklow, who stepped down in June to become president of Florida Institute of Technology.
Jeannine O’Rourke, the provost and vice president for academic affairs for the University of Louisiana System, served as interim president during the search process.
“This is a historic day for the University of New Orleans. Dr. Johnson’s qualifications are exceptional, but her unwavering dedication to the principles of education, her visionary leadership, and her passion for shaping the future of the university are well-aligned with the needs of the university community,” said UL System President and CEO Jim Henderson in a prepared statement.
The University of Louisiana’s board has not yet set her start date or salary, according to a spokesperson.
Nicklow, who’d served as the president of the university since 2016, oversaw efforts to boost the school’s enrollment.
In 2003, the University of New Orleans had more than 17,000 students, but enrollment dropped sharply in the years after Hurricane Katrina. Nicklow’s early years at the helm saw enrollment increases, but the pandemic crimped those gains.
Last year, there were just over 7,000 students enrolled.
One such effort to attract students was Nicklow’s proposal, in 2022, to build a stadium and launching a Division 1 football team. The idea failed to garner funding after the student body soundly rejected a $300-per-semester fee to fund football in a vote of the student body.
Sagging enrollment is a problem that Johnson is eager to help fix. “There’s an amazing faculty and students report that their experiences are really, really great,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to generate more enrollments and strengthen the enrollments that we have.”
Johnson, a Massachusetts native, also said she couldn’t wait to get settled into a city that she’d long admired from afar.
“The university is in one of the most beautiful locations in the country,” she said. “It has such an incredible reputation for its arts and its culture, food and music. And I love how it seems like the university has really leaned into the strengths of New Orleans and offers programs that are so nicely in alignment.”
“I just can’t wait to make the move,” she added.
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