Prof. Dr. Cornelia Woll to become the new President of the Hertie School
Berlin, 21 December 2021. Following an international selection process, the Academic Senate of the Hertie School has appointed Prof. Dr. Cornelia Woll as the new President and Academic Director of the Hertie School on the recommendation of the search committee. The political scientist currently teaches and researches at the Sciences Po in Paris and is co-director of the Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies (MaxPo). Woll takes over as President of the Hertie School from the late Prof. Dr. Henrik Enderlein, who resigned on 1 March 2021 battling with cancer. Enderlein was replaced by current Acting President Mark Hallerberg.
A search committee proposed the appointment of Professor Woll to the university’s Academic Senate, which confirmed the proposal in its meeting on 17 November 2021. The formal appointment was made by the Hertie School Supervisory Board in its meeting on 22 November. Following successful negotiations, Woll will take up the office of President on 1 August 2022 at the latest.
"Professor Woll prevailed in a competitive selection process among more than 100 international applications and nominations. Her analysis of the Hertie School and her ideas on how to foster and realise its full potential in the future, convinced all of the members of the search committee," says Frank Mattern, Chairman of the search committee and the Board of Trustees of the Hertie School. Bernd Knobloch, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the non-profit Hertie Foundation and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Hertie School is also confident about the choice: "With her experience in higher education and university administration, we are convinced that Professor Woll will bring initiative and momentum to the Hertie School."
Woll's presidency will further the Hertie School’s current strategy as a university with five Centres of Competence focused on pressing, future-oriented issues. At the same time, Woll will set her own agenda and develop a more far-reaching strategic plan for the Hertie School over the next few years.
Cornelia Woll, designated President of the Hertie School, says: "I am extremely excited about the challenging task as President of the Hertie School. The School is built on a solid foundation and has developed excellently in recent years. My goal is to continue the Hertie School's successful path. In cooperation with the entire Hertie School community, I want to set the course for the university to remain excellent in research, teaching and outreach, and to meet new challenges in the culture of learning and academic competition."
At Sciences Po, Woll is currently President of the Academic Board and co-director of the Max Planck Sciences Po Center on Coping with Instability in Market Societies. Until 2018, she served as the university's Vice President for Studies and Academic Affairs and taught as a Professor of Political Science at the Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics. From 2008 to 2012, Woll was Associate Dean for Research at Sciences Po. The scholar, who has both German and French citizenship, focuses on international political economy. She has a particular interest in financial and regulatory structures in the European Union and the United States, a country she knows well through studies and research stays.
Woll takes over the presidency of the Hertie School from Prof. Dr. Henrik Enderlein. Due to his advancing illness, Henrik Enderlein stepped down as President of the Hertie School on 1 March 2021 and passed away in May 2021. Enderlein had been President of the university since 2018 and was previously the Founding Director of the Jacques Delors Centre. After his resignation, Mark Hallerberg took over the office of President on an interim basis.
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The Hertie School in Berlin prepares exceptional students for leadership positions in government, business, and civil society. The school offers master’s programmes, executive education and doctoral programmes, distinguished by interdisciplinary and practice-oriented teaching, as well as outstanding research. Its extensive international network positions it as an ambassador of good governance, characterised by public debate and engagement. The school was founded in 2004 by the Hertie Foundation, which remains its major funder. The Hertie School is accredited by the state and the German Science Council. www.hertie-school.org
The work of the Hertie Foundation focuses on two key issues: brain research and strengthening democracy. The foundation’s programmes and initiatives provide best-practice examples and inspiration within these areas. The focus is always on people and on making tangible improvements to their living conditions. The non-profit Hertie Foundation was established in 1974 by the heirs of the department store owner Georg Karg and is today one of the largest ideologically independent and entrepreneurially unaffiliated foundations in Germany. www.ghst.de
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Press contact
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Julia Ihmels, Communications, Hertie Foundation
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