University of Wisconsin announced Sunday that Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin will leave her position at UW at the end of the academic year to serve as president of Columbia University.
“It has been a true honor to be a part of the Wisconsin family,” Mnookin said in UW’s announcement. “I am proud of what we have accomplished together, even in a challenging period for higher education, and I know great possibilities lie ahead for the UW-Madison campus community.”
Mnookin was appointed chancellor in 2022 and holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, a law degree from Yale University and a doctorate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Mnookin is recognized for creating Bucky’s Pell Pathway — a program geared toward low-income Wisconsin households that offers grants, scholarships and work-study to prevent incoming students from needing loans.
Mnookin also created the Wisconsin Tribal Education Promise for undergraduates who are part of federally recognized Wisconsin American Indian tribes.
Under Mnookin, UW constructed Morgridge Hall which gave home to the computer and data science and information studies programs — now to be reorganized into the College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence.
In a statement, Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman said he will appoint an interim chancellor after Mnookin departs while the Board of Regents will begin searching for her permanent successor.
