The following is an announcement from the Association of American Universities regarding the election of University of Kansas Chancellor Douglas Girod as chair of the AAU Board of Directors:
The member presidents and chancellors of the Association of American Universities today elected University of Kansas Chancellor Douglas Girod as chair of the AAU Board of Directors. Girod succeeds Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber, who had served as AAU’s board chair since October 2024. AAU board chairs serve a one-year term. Johns Hopkins University President Ronald Daniels was elected to serve as vice chair.
“I am honored to serve as board chair for the Association of American Universities and to have the opportunity to partner with colleagues across the nation on issues that impact higher education,” Chancellor Girod said. “America’s leading research universities are vital to our nation’s prosperity, health and security, and AAU plays a crucial role in advocating on their behalf and helping them work together. This is an important moment for higher education, and I look forward to collaborating with AAU peers, policymakers and industry leaders to ensure our nation’s research universities are positioned to continue benefitting society.”
As chair, Girod will help guide AAU’s work and serve as a spokesperson for the association, particularly on federal policy issues affecting research universities. He will also represent AAU in discussions with lawmakers, help develop the association’s national policy positions, and play a significant role in determining AAU’s agenda during the coming year.
Girod, who previously served as vice chair of the AAU board, has been KU’s chancellor since July 2017. A head-and-neck surgeon committed to patient care, Girod joined the KU Medical Center faculty in 1994 and was appointed as its executive vice chancellor in 2013. He served in the United States Navy Reserve from 1982 to 1997, when he was honorably discharged. Prior to joining KU, Girod was vice chairman and research director in the Department of Otolaryngology at the Naval Hospital in Oakland, CA.
“I have had the pleasure of working with Chancellor Girod as one of AAU’s longest-serving university leaders, and I have had the pleasure of working with him for many years,” said AAU President Barbara R. Snyder. “He is an exceptionally talented leader who approaches complex challenges with thoughtfulness and deliberation. As a public university leader, he deeply understands the transformative power of higher education and the critical role universities play in driving local, state, and national economies. I look forward to collaborating with him to ensure that America’s leading research universities continue to foster groundbreaking scientific and technological advancements that serve the public good and keep our nation globally competitive.”
Founded in 1900, the Association of American Universities is composed of America’s leading research universities. AAU’s 71 research universities transform lives through education, research, and innovation.
Our member universities earn the majority of competitively awarded federal funding for research that improves public health, seeks to address national challenges, and contributes significantly to our economic strength, while educating and training tomorrow’s visionary leaders and innovators.
AAU member universities collectively help shape policy for higher education, science, and innovation; promote best practices in undergraduate and graduate education; and strengthen the contributions of leading research universities to American society.
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