Change in university leadership at HFU: Prof. Dr. Rolf Schofer will hand over to his newly elected successor Dr. Alexandra Bormann in March 2024. President Rolf Schofer (left), Head of Administration Andrea Linke (2nd from right) and the Chairman of the University Board of Executives Dirk Schallock (right), congratulated her warmly on her new position.
Successor to Prof. Dr. Rolf Schofer at the helm of Furtwangen University to take office in March 2024
Furtwangen University (HFU) will have a female president next year. The Senate and the University Executive decided for Dr. Alexandra Bormann from Freiburg as the successor to Prof. Dr. Rolf Schofer during the election on Monday evening in a public meeting on the Schwenningen campus.
Dr. Alexandra Bormann prevailed against three competitors and was elected as the new President of HFU in the second ballot. Bormann said she accepted the result "with awe and delight". She is very much looking forward to shaping HFU's path into the future together with all university members and external partners.
After working for the German Research Foundation (DFG), Dr. Alexandra Bormann was head of Strategy and University Development at the University of Freiburg for many years; she is currently head of Education and Support for Schools for the City of Freiburg.
Dr. Bormann will be the first woman to head Furtwangen University as President. What most appeals to her about her new role is the collaboration with the many people who shape HFU, the university's broad range of subjects and its strength in teaching, research and transfer. She has set herself the goal of strengthening the diversity and identity of the university, "We can only offer students the best possible conditions if we work together. And we must, because our students will shape the society of the future."
The handover, which will take place in March 2024, marks the end of an era at Furtwangen University. Prof. Dr. Rolf Schofer had held the rector's office since 2006, for three terms of six years each, longer than any previous HFU president. Rolf Schofer will retire in March. "Furtwangen University has enormous potential, and I am convinced that Dr. Bormann is exactly the right person to drive its further development," said Schofer, congratulating his successor warmly on her election.
With Rolf Schofer's last term of office coming to an end, there will also be a new election of the three vice-presidents at Furtwangen University: Prof. Robert Schäflein-Armbruster (Vice President Academic Affairs), Prof. Dr. Ulrich Mescheder (Vice President Research,) and Prof. Dr. Michael Lederer (Vice President International and Executive Learning). As the new president, Dr. Alexandra Bormann will submit proposals for a new Board of Executives which will then be elected by the university Senate.