Northwestern Taps President Emeritus Henry S. Bienen For Interim President

EVANSTON, IL — Northwestern University's Board of Trustees named President Emeritus Henry S. Bienen as interim president effective Sept. 16.

Bienen served as the university's 15th president from January 1995 to August 2009. During his tenure, he led Northwestern to increased academic prominence, research prowess, financial strength and athletic success.

“I am honored to be asked to serve Northwestern again, and I look forward to helping the University I love so dearly navigate what is a critical and difficult time for research universities,” Bienen said. “I
care a great deal about the Northwestern community, which has been a major part of my life for more than 30 years.

The announcement comes just five days after Michael Schill announced his resignation. Schill's resignation came off the back of months of financial struggle and litigation against the university.

After a sabbatical, Schill will return as a professor at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law to teach and conduct research.

Related Coverage: Northwestern President Michael Schill Resigns

The university will share more information with the community about steps it will take to select Northwestern's next president when it is available.

“We will be working closely with Henry to ensure we can continue to support our outstanding faculty, postdocs, staff and students, and Northwestern’s ecosystem of diverse and interdisciplinary research to deliver world-class research developments and education,” said Peter Barris, chair of Northwestern’s Board of Trustees.