Provost among Crain’s ‘Notable Women Executives Over 50’

UIC Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan Poser is among the 2019 class of “Notable Women Executives Over 50” honored by Crain’s Chicago Business.

Profiles of the honorees can be found online and in the April 29 edition of the magazine.

“I am honored by this recognition and proud to have a leadership role at the University of Illinois at Chicago, which is a truly extraordinary university, and to be participating in the civic life of this magnificent city,” Poser said.

The recognition honors 75 outstanding female executives while acknowledging that, despite progress over time, women still hold a small percentage of senior leadership roles globally. Only 4.8% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women, and women hold fewer than 25% of senior leadership roles throughout the world, Crain’s reports.

The list of female leaders across the city aims to “provide encouragement and inspiration for the next generation of women moving up,” the magazine writes.

Poser joined UIC in 2016 after serving as dean and professor of law at the University of Nebraska. At UIC, she oversees the university’s academic enterprise, which includes planning, implementing and assessing campus academic programs.

Since Poser’s arrival on campus, undergraduate enrollment has increased by 19%. She also is leading UIC’s acquisition of the John Marshall Law School to create Chicago’s first and only public law school.

Poser has established a variety of programs for faculty and students, including the monthly Campus Conversation series, which addresses current issues; East + West Research Mixers to foster cross-campus interdisciplinary research; the Faculty Administrator Leadership Program; and more.

She also is principal investigator on a four-year, $1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to create the Engaged Humanities Initiatives at UIC, which expands opportunities for undergraduate research in the humanities.

Follow her on Twitter @SusanPoserUIC.