Mavericks,
I am truly honored and excited to share with you that Dr. Phil He has been selected as our university’s next Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs following a stringent and exhaustive national search process guided by feedback provided by our campus community where a total of 40 qualified candidates sought to join our thriving Maverick community.
Dr. He will begin his role on January 3, 2023, pending approval by the University of Nebraska Board of Regents.
True to his Maverick roots as a UNO alumnus, Dr. He is an innovator whose track record includes the creation of unique interdisciplinary degree programs, challenging the status quo to find new ways of recognizing academic excellence, and breaking down the barriers of the traditional classroom through experiential learning.
Dr. He joins us following nearly 20 years at Northeastern University, which is ranked among some of the most well-regarded and innovative schools in the United States. Northeastern University currently enrolls approximately 42,000 degree-seeking students and is ranked by U.S. News and World Report in its most recent assessment as #1 for Co-ops/Internships and #11 among Most Innovative Schools. Northeastern also leads all U.S. universities with 19,485 international students, has an operating budget of $1.5 billion, and their external research awards have already surpassed $220 million in 2022. Additionally, Northeastern's undergraduate retention and six-year graduation rates are 97% and 91%, respectively. The university has also worked to close an important equity gap, improving the graduation rate of underrepresented students from 84% (2011 cohort) to 91% (2015 cohort).
For these reasons, I know this is a move that Dr. He did not make lightly or without intent to be fully committed to UNO. I encourage you to read more about his background on our senior vice chancellor search website.
Throughout the entire search, Dr. He showed his understanding and passion for UNO’s mission and it was clear from the feedback provided by our faculty, staff, and students, that he was the right person for this vital role.
I want to personally thank Dean John Bartle, who chaired our search committee, and to every one of our 12-member committee from our student, faculty, staff, and committee constituencies that helped us identify our next chief academic officer with our partners Diversified Search Group.
I also want to thank all of you. Every member of our campus community provided incredibly vital feedback to our committee and to me in telling us who best represents our values and our strategic vision.
Finally, I want to thank Dr. Deborah Smith-Howell, who has overseen our Academic Affairs unit these past five months and been a champion for our faculty, students, and staff as we’ve navigated a busy and successful Fall 2022 semester.
The role of Senior Vice Chancellor is one that touches every aspect of our university mission and because of that we are all invested in the success of the person who fills that role. As Dr. He rejoins our Maverick community; I hope you will welcome him with the same open arms that you welcomed me last summer. More details will be forthcoming on how you can engage in next steps as we help to onboard Dr. He in his new role.
Thank you for your time and for all that you do for our campus.
Sincerely,
Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA
Chancellor
