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Meet the Interim President

About Susan Fritz

About the Presidential Role

As interim president, Dr. Fritz led the University of Nebraska and its four campuses. She served as the university's chief executive officer and reported to the Board of Regents, who are elected to govern the university.

“The President is the spokesperson of the University as a statewide institution.”

The president is responsible for university administration, operation and implementing Board policies and goals—and works with the university’s campus chancellors and vice presidents to do so. They also provide educational leadership, direction and strategy to the university.

They are the spokesperson for the university as a statewide institution, helping to communicate NU’s achievements and potential to the leadership and citizens of the state.

Interim Presidential Biography

Susan M. Fritz, Ph.D.

Susan M. Fritz, Ph.D. served as interim president of the University of Nebraska from August 16 to December 31, 2019 and was the first woman to lead the university since the system office was created. Prior to and after her tenure as interim president, Dr. Fritz served as NU’s executive vice president and provost from August 2012 to July 2021 and was granted the title of Emerita Executive Vice President and Provost upon her retirement in 2021. From August 2011 to August 2012, she served Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Dr. Susan Fritz at President Emeritus Hank Bounds' farewell celebration at Varner Hall, July 2019.
Dr. Susan Fritz at President Emeritus Hank Bounds' farewell celebration at Varner Hall, July 2019.

Before joining the Provost’s Office, Dr. Fritz was the Associate Vice Chancellor for the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) and Interim Dean of the Agricultural Research Division. She also directed IANR’s international agricultural programs, and is a former associate dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources and department head of the Agricultural Leadership, Education & Communication (ALEC) program.

Dr. Fritz is a 1979 graduate of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL); she received her master’s degree in 1989 and her Ph.D. in 1993, both from UNL. In 2009, she was inducted into the Nebraska Hall of Agricultural Achievement and is the recipient of numerous awards for teaching excellence.

Board of Regents Chairman Tim Clare, President Emeritus Hank Bounds, 2019 ORCA Award Recipient Kwame Dawes, Ph.D. (UNL Chancellor's Professor of English & editor of Prairie Schooner), Interim President Susan Fritz and UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green at the 2019 President's Excellence Awards. 
Regent Tim Clare, President Emeritus Hank Bounds, 2019 ORCA Award Recipient Kwame Dawes, Ph.D., Interim President Susan Fritz and UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green at the 2019 President's Excellence Awards. 
Dr. Susan Fritz on the 50-yard line at Memorial Stadium. She believes we should win on the field, in the classroom and lab, and in the community.
Dr. Susan Fritz on the 50-yard line at Memorial Stadium. She believes we should win on the field, in the classroom and lab, and in the community.

She completed a Fulbright Senior Specialist assignment at the University of Zagreb (Croatia), served ten years as a North Central Higher Learning Commission Consultant Evaluator, and was a 2012 Baldrige Examiner with the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Dr. Fritz serves as a Fulbright Evaluator, a Food Systems Leadership Institute Commissioner, and a Midwest Higher Education Compact Commissioner.