September 1, 2016

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Marquette president says changes will advance university in new ways

MILWAUKEE — Marquette University President Michael R. Lovell today announced key organizational changes to his executive leadership team, a strategic realignment that he says is vital to the Catholic, Jesuit university executing its strategic plan, Beyond Boundaries. Lovell said these moves will best position senior leadership to achieve the university's mission-critical, strategic imperatives, and enable Marquette to attain its vision to be among the most accomplished and innovative Catholic and Jesuit universities in the world.

"Rooted in our Catholic, Jesuit mission and guided by our values, Beyond Boundaries is an inspirational and transformational path for the Marquette community to realize our bold vision," Lovell said. "Critical to our success is building an effective leadership team that is nimble, action-oriented and decisive. We will better align our already talented leadership team so that we can be more efficient, perform at the highest levels and go beyond the status quo."

Adding that "Marquette's academic and research mission is at the heart of all we do," Lovell announced that Provost Dan Myers will now also carry the title of executive vice president for academic affairs, which Lovell says reflects the university's strong provost model and the provost's role as the university's chief academic officer.

"It's important that Provost Myers is able to focus on leading the university's academic affairs, as well as work closely with the deans to execute the ambitious academic, research and enrollment goals outlined in Beyond Boundaries," Lovell said.

He added, "Beyond Boundaries will require extraordinary investments and innovative new partnerships to bolster how we deliver our transformational education and student experience, build our endowment, advance research and scholarship, and reimagine and reshape our infrastructure. So, it is imperative that Provost Myers and I have a key partner who complements our roles and who can help our entire leadership team operate more efficiently and effectively."

To that end, Lovell announced the creation of an executive vice president for operations position. The individual in this position will report directly to the president and will provide administrative and fiscal leadership throughout the university. Lovell emphasized that the new EVP for operations will be an essential member of his executive team.

The search for the EVP for operations will commence soon and will be co-chaired by Myers and alumnus Darren Jackson, former chair of Marquette's board of trustees and retired CEO of Advance Auto Parts, who will also assist in the transition to the new organizational structure.

"Big ideas and breakthroughs don't happen by chance. We know that people — the right people — make things happen," Lovell said. "The right people bring focus and make decisions. The right people work collaboratively — they are facilitators and expeditors. Now more than ever it is vital that we maximize our talented and dedicated team to take Marquette Beyond Boundaries."