North Dakota University System chancellor to leave position in 18 months

Chancellor Mark Hagerott gives a presentation Jan. 17, 2024, at the North Dakota State College of Science. He is recommending three-year contracts for college and university presidents. (Photo provided by the North Dakota University System)

Chancellor Mark Hagerott will lead the North Dakota University System for another 18 months before transitioning to a professor position, the State Board of Higher Education determined Tuesday.

The board met in a closed-door executive session Tuesday to discuss Hagerott’s evaluation and extending his contract. Board members then resumed the open meeting and voted unanimously to extend Hagerott’s contract by six months through the end of December 2025.

Hagerott’s current contract is through June 2025. It’s typical for the board to renew contracts for one year at a time.

Board members agreed to grant Hagerott a three-year position as distinguished professor of artificial intelligence and human security after he completes his contract as chancellor.

Board members did not cite during the open meeting their reasons for the transition.

Hagerott has led North Dakota’s 11 public colleges and universities since 2015. His salary is $424,035, and he will make $440,996 next year with a 4% raise.

Hagerott told board members during the meeting that he looks forward to leading the university system through the next legislative session.

“I want to thank the board for this transition back to academia,” Hagerott said. “I know some eyes may glaze over, but I still am an academic.”

The distinguished professor position will be for the entire university system in cooperation with the Dakota Digital Academy and Core Technology Services. Specifics of that contract and salary have yet to be determined.

Board Chair Timothy Mihalick thanked Hagerott for his service and said he looked forward to the next 18 months. He added that he’s excited for Hagerott to teach North Dakota and the nation about artificial intelligence.

“Your knowledge is probably second to none in this country,” Mihalick said.

The board, meeting in Bottineau, also voted after a closed-door executive session to extend the contracts of all campus presidents by one year.

In February, board members granted a leave of absence for Hagerott to take time off to prepare to teach a class on artificial intelligence and work on a book. Hagerott will co-teach a class at North Dakota State University this fall.

One board member, Jeffry Volk, opposed Hagerott’s request for that leave of absence, saying he had received negative feedback about it. Others were supportive of the developmental leave, which is allowed under a board policy for the chancellor and presidents with more than five years on the job.

Hagerott will be out of the office from late July through late August to attend conferences, prepare to teach that class and also take some annual leave, said Jerry Rostad, vice chancellor of strategy and strategic engagement.

Hagerott and Volk were at odds during the 2023 legislative session. Volk worked with Sen. Judy Lee last year to introduce Senate Bill 2343 after Volk said he experienced challenges as a board member accessing confidential records and documents generated prior to him joining the board. Hagerott testified in opposition to the bill. It was later amended and approved.

A one-page evaluation of Hagerott dated June 20 noted some of the chancellor’s recent accomplishments and expressed the board’s appreciation for his work. The evaluation did not identify any concerns with his performance.

Emails sent to Volk and Mihalick seeking comment were not returned Tuesday.

Hagerott’s voicemail was full Tuesday and he did not respond to a text message seeking comment after the meeting.

Rep. Eric Murphy, R-Grand Forks, an associate professor of biomedical sciences, was a non-voting faculty member on the State Board of Higher Education when Hagerott was hired. Murphy said Tuesday he thinks Hagerott’s communication style may have contributed to the board wanting to move on.

“I think Mark brought that military experience … and that always doesn’t work very well with academics,” said Murphy, who teaches at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences. 

Murphy used an analogy of swimming versus treading water to describe Hagerott’s leadership.

“When you tread water for a long time, it’s a lot of work, but you don’t do anything,” he said. “When you apply that to Mark, we did a lot of stuff that was sort of like treading water.”

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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