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As she introduced herself to the University community as Rochester’s next president, Sarah Mangelsdorf, currently the provost at the University of Wisconsin– Madison, offered an overview of how she thinks about higher education and the special role it plays in the lives of those who study, teach, and work at universities.

An award-winning teacher herself, she told a story of being a third-generation academic. Her father was a professor of physics at Swarthmore College in Philadelphia, where she grew up. Her grandfather had been a plant geneticist at Harvard. From an early age, she was steeped not just in the traditions, expectations, and jargon of academia, but she also saw the commitment with which members of university communities engage with their institutions and with each other.

“Some of my earliest memories are the pomp and circumstance of academic ceremonies, with my father in his academic robes on his way to graduation—on his bike no less,” Mangelsdorf told a group of faculty, staff, and students gathered this winter in Rush Rhees Library for an introductory ceremony that was also streamed live to the University community. “But in addition to growing up knowing about all the customs, costumes, and the ceremonies of the academy, I learned early on the fundamental importance, the essential importance, of the academic enterprise.”

Over the course of a three-decade career at some of the nation’s leading public and private universities, Mangelsdorf has been widely recognized for helping her home institutions achieve their goals. After a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin, she earned a PhD at the University of Minnesota before embarking on a career as a professor of psychology and noted academic administrator. From her first faculty appointment at the University of Michigan to teaching, research, and leadership positions at the University of Illinois, Northwestern University, and Wisconsin, Mangelsdorf has earned praise for her work to advance academic quality, educational access, and diversity and inclusion.

Throughout her career, she has distinguished herself as a leader who’s attentive to the contributions of every constituency that makes up an academic community. As part of her Rochester presentation, she celebrated the wide cast—faculty, students, alumni, staff, donors, members of local and regional communities, elected officials, and other friends—who contribute to the success of universities like Rochester.

The first woman to lead the University, Mangelsdorf officially takes on the role of Rochester’s president this summer. In the meantime, she shared some of her aspirations and ideas about the life of research universities as a way of introducing herself to the University community. Here are a few highlights:

Creating Value—for Individuals and for Communities

Institutions like the University of Rochester create value, from the scientific research discoveries that uncover new basic knowledge and new cures and medical treatments, to scholarship in the arts, humanities, and social sciences that help us to better understand the human condition and human motivation, to the reflective and revelatory experiences music, dance, theater, and the visual arts provide, and finally to the necessary contribution that the higher education experience makes in the formation of young—and sometimes not-so-young—minds.

Helping Better Thinkers Be Better Leaders

Exposure to difference, experience with civil discourse, embracing new ideas, new approaches, new points of view, risk and reward, argument and perspective, challenge and compassion. These are the things that higher education should provide in abundance. These are the things that are essential to the development of our students. These are the things that I believe create better thinkers, better leaders, and better citizens of this world. Higher education should and does change people’s lives.

Widening the Window of Opportunity

I have spent much of my career working to ensure that this formative experience is available to the widest possible number of people regardless of their gender or race, religion, or economic background. I will bring that perspective to my presidency. I am passionate about equity, diversity, and inclusion, and have championed programs at all three of the institutions where I have been an administrator to increase the diversity of our faculty, staff, and students. I will bring all of that experience, passion, and commitment to Rochester.

Sharing Our Significance

We talk at Rochester about making the world ever better, and we do—in so many ways. One of my responsibilities will be to make sure that we stay on this course and that we have the resources to do so. One of my other responsibilities will be to make sure that more people know about it. The University of Rochester makes significant contributions to the world, and the world should know that. It’s time that the University claims and takes credit for all of its excellence.

Being a Good Neighbor

Even as we attend to our national and international reputation, which is very important, we must also attend to our home city and region. I’m committed to sustaining and enhancing our University’s continued engagement with our local community. The University of Rochester is proud to call the city of Rochester our home.

Giving Thanks

I want to thank Cathy Minehan, Danny Wegman, and Rich Handler, and the rest of the University’s Board of Trustees for their trust in me. I will do everything in my power to justify that trust. I would also like to thank President Rich Feldman for his dedication and stewardship of an institution I know he loves deeply.

Most importantly, I’ve been struck by the affection and pride that everyone seems to have for this special place on the banks of the Genesee. And I would like to thank all of you for your support and commitment to the University.

I would also like to thank my family: my husband, Karl Rosengren, a distinguished professor of psychology; our daughters, Julia and Emily, who are a constant source of delight and inspiration; and our son-in-law, Richard Lee. I would not have been able to accomplish everything I’ve accomplished without the support of my home team.

Collaborating on a Vision

Today is just my first day at the University of Rochester, so there will be plenty of time for me to work with you to develop and expand a vision for this place. I won’t be able to do it alone. Indeed, I don’t intend to do it alone. I look forward to working collaboratively with all of you to help us reach our goals. Meliora!

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