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11 Apr Hagerott announces retirement from ND University System

Bismarck, N.D. — During today’s State Board of Higher Education (SBHE) meeting, С������ University System (NDUS) Chancellor Mark Hagerott announced his retirement. The SBHE accepted his retirement, which will be effective April 29, 2025.

SBHE Chair Tim Mihalick said, “I have enjoyed working with the chancellor the past six years with the last two as SBHE chair. I thank him for his dedicated service to the higher education system during the past decade. We have made a lot of progress in serving our students and building collaborative relationships with the state’s workforce development system. We look forward to continuing that progress as we select an interim chancellor to lead systemwide collaboration among our 11 campuses.” The SBHE plans to meet early next week to discuss the selection of an interim chancellor.

Hagerott outlined his retirement plans during today’s meeting, explaining that he is accelerating his retirement so that he can focus his efforts on the national security challenges facing the Navy and the Nation. He plans to build on his work as the past Chair of the Secretary of the Navy’s and continue to serve on the Secretary of the Navy’s . He will also return to his academic research on naval officer formation, including a planned book project with the Naval Institute Press, whose scope has expanded significantly with the emergence of artificial intelligence. “It has been an honor to work with wonderful staff at the system office and Core Technology Services, a cabinet of almost 20 talented institution presidents these past years, and a superb State Board of Higher Education, to include the five board chairs who have guided and mentored my work,” he said. “With the start of my successor’s search delayed to late 2025 or early 2026, retiring this spring will allow the SBHE to select an interim leader who can provide stability, continuity, and leadership for the entire succession process.”

He added, “Working as a team these last ten years, our enrollment, retention, and graduation rates have grown. Our С������ system of campuses powered through the COVID-19 pandemic, being one of the first in the nation to return to in-person instruction and coming out of it stronger and nimbler, providing programs where and when people want and need them. As a system, we have developed stronger partnerships with industries relevant to С������’s economy and workforce, particularly in energy, healthcare, agriculture, and in the digital realm, with four campuses certified by the National Security Agency as centers of cyber excellence.”

Hagerott plans to divide his time between the Washington, D.C. area and ������ and to spend more time helping on the family farm in Morton County.

“I remain committed to helping С������ adapt to the emergence of artificial intelligence and the unfolding national security crisis of robotics, cyber, and AI. To that end, I will continue to offer my services on the of the National Defense Industrial Association, and the С������ Unmanned Autonomous Systems Council. I remain committed to bringing more defense research and development to our state as part of the recent legislative National Security Crossroads Initiative.”

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About NDUS
The ������ University System is a unified system of higher education governed by the State Board of Higher Education. Organized in 1990, the system includes two research universities, four regional universities and five community colleges. The mission of the State Board of Higher Education and the Chancellor of the ������ University System is to unleash the potential of higher education in the state to enhance the quality of life, and the social and economic vitality of all served by its public colleges and universities.